Long Road Home
by ashlynnb14
Summary: Ana Knowles just returned to Charming from serving in the Army for six years. She's none too happy to find out Tara is with Jax and loathes SAMCRO. What happens when she lets her guard down and meets a certain Scotsman who knows what its like to come from a war. ((Crappy summary but give it a read))
1. Chapter 1

I woke up to the jolt of tarmac meeting the plane's tires. It had been a long flight from New York to Sacramento and my stomach was really feeling the in flight vodka. I straightened up in my seat and wiped drool off my cheek and hand. The businessman next to me scoffed as I stretched my arms out in front of me. I smiled sarcastically at him and pulled my bag out from under my seat, ready to get off the plane as soon as possible.

I slid the window cover up and looked around as we taxied up to the terminal. From what I could remember from leaving six years ago, everything looked the same. A few minutes later the seatbelt light went off with a beep and the flight attendant blabbered something about thanking them for flying, blah blah blah. I stood quickly and tapped my foot impatiently as the businessman took his damn time getting his stuff out of the overhead compartment.

Finally off of the plane, my sister Tara at the gate greeted me. She was all smiles holding a little sign saying welcome home Ana. I smiled and walked over to her with my arms outstretched.

"Hey Tara Bear! I missed you so much!" I threw my arms around her and squeezed her for a few minutes. She laughed and pushed me back to arms length and looked at me.

"Way to squeeze me to death Sargent! I'm so glad you're finally home. You look so different in person! You're all grown up." She said with a tear falling slowly from the corner of her eye. I nudged her and smiled.

"I'm still your little sister and always will be. You'll always be old. I mean older," I said with a laugh. She slugged me in the arm and reminded me she was only three years older. I laughed harder as she stormed off. I followed light heartedly poking fun at her until we got out to the car.

"Seriously though, thanks for picking me up. I know you are probably swamped at the hospital." I said as I buckled up in the passenger seat. Tara looked over at me and shrugged.

"I'm never to busy to pick up my sister from the airport. Especially since she's finally home for good after six years and four deployments!" I smiled sheepishly and looked down at my boots. It would be the last time I wore my uniform unless I got called up out of reserves for some shit storm. After serving in the Army for six years and reaching Sargent I had finally decided not to reenlist and come back home to my only remaining family, Tara. I turned up the radio and leaned back as we started on the drive to Charming. Fifteen minutes into the ride, Tara turned down the radio.

"I've got to stop by the garage and see Jax for a minute and then we'll go straight home, I promise." She said quickly before turning the radio back up, louder even than before. I popped up straight and turned it back down.

"Crazy bitch said what?" I asked loudly, getting a glare from Tara. "From our last video chat, I distinctly remember you mentioning being done with Jax Teller and all that Sons of Anarchy shit. Tara you have got to be kidding me!" I spat at her with more venom than I meant to. She just looked over at me for a minute and sighed.

"Ana, he's the love of my life whether I like it sometimes or not. He's grown up a lot and he's trying to take the club in a better direction." She gave me a weak smile and turned her eyes back on the road. Not wanting to argue so soon after coming home, I just turned the radio back up and put my sunglasses on. I knew the club and Jax Teller were bad news, whether Tara wanted to make excuses for them or not.

I must have fallen asleep because Tara stopped the car and nudged me hard. I opened my eyes and groaned. We were in the lair of the Sons of Anarchy and it looked as if they were all pulling in just as we got there.

"Get out of the car, Ana." Tara said with annoyance as she released my seat belt. I muttered under my breath about how much I truly did not want to get out of the car, but decided to appease her this time. She hopped out and was already over by the Harleys by the time I climbed out and got my hat on. I walked slowly over to Tara and put my hands on my hips, quietly wishing I had my M-4. Jax reached out and shook my hand.

"Welcome home, Ana. I haven't seen you in years! Tara hasn't stopped talking about you coming home for months." He smiled genuinely and I had to smile back. As much as I couldn't stand my sister's on again off again boyfriend, he was a charmer. I thanked him and stepped back, letting them talk about whatever brought us here. I noticed the majority of the eyes of leather-vested bikers were on me. Piney Winston, an original member of the club and my personal favorite walked over to me and reached out to shake my hand.

"Ana, I want to welcome you home and thank you for being a protector of our country. I know your dad would have been proud to see you now." I looked at him for a minute, taking in the age that had taken a toll on him and the oxygen tank he had abandoned by his trike. I paused for a second and gave him a big hug. As much as I disapproved of the club and Jax, Piney was like a father, or at least an uncle, to me before I left. He patted me softly on the back of my hair and kissed my cheek. I smiled and let him go slowly.

"You're coming to the party tonight, right? You can get to know the guys and some of your old friends were invited." Piney beamed down at me as I looked up to him with confusion.

"What party?" I asked with caution. He looked over at Tara and Jax and pulled at his beard.

"Damn, I thought she would have told you by now seeing as how I told her war veterans aren't big on surprises." He looked back at me and grinned sheepishly. "It's a welcome home party. She's been planning it for weeks. Now, I know how you felt about us before you left, but it's a lot better now. You don't want to leave an old man hanging do you?" I rolled my eyes and took off my sunglasses, squinting up at him. His old man puppy dog eyes won over my hardened expression as I threw my hands up in the air.

"Fine. I'll be here but there better not be any crazy gang shit." I hugged him briefly and went back to the car. I honked the horn for Tara to hurry up and put on my seat belt.


	2. Chapter 2

A few minutes later she hopped in the drivers seat and we headed out to our dad's house. I didn't say anything about the party as my initial anger had subsided. If she wanted to surprise me, then what was the harm in letting her, as long as it wasn't a surprise. We pulled into the driveway and I grabbed my bag and followed her in, inhaling sharply at the familiarity of the house. She hadn't really changed anything since our dad died, so it pained me a little to see it as he left it. I looked over at Tara to see her watching me carefully.

"I'm fine. War hardened soldier remember?" I walked back to my old room and threw my bag on the bed before looking around at the old pictures and tiaras. I felt vomit inching up my throat as the memories of glitzy gowns and hairspray flashed in my mind. I was always a girly girl but thinking back to just how superficial it always disgusted me. I opened my closet and breathed a sigh of relief as my clothes had apparently arrived ahead of me and Tara had taken the time to put them up for me.

Seeing as how I knew we'd be going to a party, I surveyed my closet for a few minutes devising a plan. I didn't want to try and catch a son tonight, but I did want to show off as to let them know that some women were actually unattainable. I settled on a pair of leather leggings and boots with a white flowing tank top with a skull made of black crystals on the front. I had picked it up in Germany and hadn't gotten a chance to wear it, so I was actually a little excited for the excuse.

I got in the shower and by force of habit finished washing my hair and body within eight minutes. I laughed as I got out and started drying off. My blonde hair shone brightly in the light as I dried it straight. Finishing up with just a bit of mascara and perfume, I got dressed and walked back into the living room to find Tara changed into tight jeans and a black tank. I smiled and so did she.

"So, how do I look?" I did a turn, letting my loose tank flare out in the air. She giggled and nodded.

"You look great! Are you planning on going somewhere?" She asked with fake innocence. I smiled just as innocently and shook my head.

"Nope, just felt like looking like a girl." I genuinely laughed because I honestly did miss looking like a girl for the past three months. Tara nodded and dug the toe of her boot into the carpet.

"Well I thought we could go down to the diner and maybe eat and grab a beer if you wanted to." She didn't look at me. I would have known she was lying even if Piney hadn't spilt the beans earlier.

"Okay!" I said cheerfully, grabbing my purse and walking towards the door. Tara looked surprised.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, "That was easy, okay, well let's go." I laughed and shook my head as she grabbed the car keys.

"Tara, I know my bike is here so just go ahead and give me my keys to it. It's been too long since I've ridden it and I will follow you there." She looked nervous but dug around in her purse and tossed me a small key ring with my key and a house key on it.

"Is it in the shed?" I asked. She nodded and I headed back to the shed and slid the door open. My beautiful Harley Davidson Iron 883 was standing there waiting for me. I smiled as I walked it out of the shed and out onto the driveway. The sun was just going down and it hit the candy purple paint just right. I piled my hair on top of my head and put on my helmet to avoid helmet hair and smiled broadly. Tara shook her head as she pulled out before me. I obnoxiously revved my bike up loudly as she shifted into drive.

She drove directly towards the diner before taking what would have been a surprising right off of the route. I followed, to preoccupied with my bike and the open air to be annoyed. As she pulled into Teller Morrow, I played off my surprise by stopping in the street and shaking my head. She folded her hand together and yelled please. I just revved loudly before pulling into the lot. I decided to make a statement and walked my bike back alongside the son's Harley's. There were roughly thirty people milling around with drinks and smokes as I turned my bike off and hopped off. I hung my helmet on my handlebars and shook out my hair before throwing my purse into Tara's car and letting her lock it. I still wasn't used to carrying one yet.

"Thank you so much for coming here! Surprise! It's all for you!" Tara said excitedly, smiling and hugging me. It was out of character for Tara to get excited about something, so I finally gave in and decided to try and have fun. I saw Jax walking up and shook his hand.

"Thanks for helping her set all this up," I said gesturing around to the decorations and people. He nodded and welcomed me home again.

"Nice bike, by the way. Tara had me help the delivery crew so it wouldn't get damaged." He grinned and tilted his head over to it. "I think it may have some admirers over there." I followed his hint and saw a couple of sons and prospects checking it out. One great thing about other bikers is you don't have to worry about them touching your bike.

I walked over and introduced myself to the ones I didn't know and greeted the sons I did know. "Hi, I'm Ana Knowles. Tara's little sister."

"Baby, you aren't so little anymore." Trager said looking me up and down. I flipped him off with a curt, "Shut up, Tig." He laughed and hugged me with one arm. He introduced me to his companions one by one. I was about to politely excuse myself to the bar when he grabbed a passing son by the shoulder and pulled him over.

"Ana, this here is our Scotsman Chibs. He was around before you left but I don't think you every really met." He smiled and smacked Chibs hard on the back. "Chibs this here is Ana Knowles. She's Tara's not so little sister that can probably kick our asses with her eyes closed." Chibs grinned and nodded.

"I'm sure you'd enjoy that a little to much brotha," he said with a thick Scottish accent. I grabbed a beer Tara was offering me and nonchalantly studied Chibs as he and Trager argued back and forth. He was definitely new to me, as I would have remembered at least his scars from before. I could tell he was quite a bit older than me and even Tara as his hair was graying in some places and there were faint lines coming through around his eyes. He wasn't skinny by any means, but looked like he took care of himself, which seemed to age him back down. I felt something start to stir in my stomach, so I abruptly walked away as they continued to argue.

I wasn't here to meet anyone and I sure as hell wasn't going to get caught up with a son. I spent the next few hours blocking him from my mind and talking to some old friends turned crow eaters and drinking top shelf vodka on ice. I actually started enjoying myself when I noticed something was off. The line of bikes were full and I knew there weren't many, if any more sons that weren't already here, yet I heard the rumbling of at least four Harleys out on the road. I looked around for Tara and saw her sitting on a picnic table over by the boxing ring on the clubhouse's patio. She and Jax were smiling and kissing, so I didn't want to interrupt them with what was probably nothing.

The noise grew louder and then I heard them start to slow down. Whether it was war-grown paranoia or intuition. I ran over to my bike and pulled out my M9 from the saddlebag. Chibs and Tig noticed my sudden movement and pulled their pieces, following my gaze. I kept my M9 at my side as I crouched behind my bike just high enough to see the main road.


	3. Chapter 3

The air was filled with the roaring of Harleys as five to seven bikes flew up alongside the gate opening. There was a split second for me to turn off my safety before they opened fire. Chaos erupted to my right as women ran inside and sons drew their weapons and returned fire. I emptied my first clip at the bikes and dropped it and slammed a new one in just as Chibs dove over beside me. I continued shooting as my ears buzzed and my hearing faded out. I managed to shoot one in the shoulder as Chibs took out his knee and he and his bike fell to the ground.

With that the assailants peeled away and left their companion on the ground, but not before ensuring he wasn't able to talk. I stood up as Tara started to run towards me. I whistled sharply and threw my hand up for her to stop. I pulled my secondary out of my saddlebag and ran up to the gate that two prospects were in the process of closing. Instinctively I checked the area before going back to Tara. She was shaken, but not so much as to keep from yelling at me.

"What in the hell were you thinking staying out there! You should have run inside with the rest of us." She shoved me hard on the shoulder. I took a deep breath and looked at her incredulously.

"Tara, I don't know what you think I was doing out at day camp for the last six years. I was fucking military police. What do you want me to do cower and let people get hurt?" I yelled at her. I ejected my magazine and cleared the chamber before putting my pistol back in the saddlebag.

"You want to let your boyfriend and his club have a shoot out but bitch at me when I'm the only one here trained for that shit?" I grabbed my helmet and gripped it tightly, furious at her for berating me. "Fuck it!" I said, slamming my helmet on a little too forcefully. I cranked up my Harley and peeled out to the gate. The prospect at the gate was too shocked to deny me exit and rolled the metal gate out of my way.

**CHIBS POV**

Tara smacked Jax in the chest and looked at him expectantly. He looked down at her and ran his hand through his hair.

"She doesn't like me, Tara. What do you want me to do, chase after her?" Jax looked frustrated and Tara looked like she was going to scream and cry at the same time. She just nodded. Jax rubbed his palm down his face.

"Jacky boy, I'll go." I said as I started my bike. "I get where she's coming from bettah than you probably do." He nodded and I raced out of the lot, looking for a pissed of soldier with a loaded gun.


	4. Chapter 4

**More coming soon as I've gotten really involved with the storyline. Keep the reviews coming and I'll try to update more later today!**

**ANA'S POV**

I pulled my bike off the road roughly, immediately apologizing out loud to her as she idled. I walked it forward a little more and cut it off. I sat there for a second on the side of the road, just collecting my thoughts. I looked around and noticed where I was. It was the pond my dad and I used to come to after a fight. I walked to the edge of the pond and sat down hard.

I was calming down a little by skipping rocks across the water when I heard a hog coming down the road. I listened closely, but it had to be a single rider. Still, I stood up and walked back to my bike and opened my saddlebag, ready to grab my pistol if need be. The biker pulled his bike up behind mine and turned it off. He slowly raised his hands above his head and took off his helmet.

It was Chibs.

"What do you want?" I said, closing my saddlebag back up. "Put your hands down, you look like an idiot." He laughed and shrugged, slowly bringing his hands down to his side.

"Better a living idiot than a dead fool." Chibs said with a boyish grin. Had I not still been angry, I may have laughed along with him.

"Tara has no idea what she's talking about. I've been fighting in a fucking war for six years and she wants to scream at me for protecting innocent people from a few thugs? It wasn't summer camp over there, you know." I huffed and walked back to the water's edge. Chibs followed me slowly and sat down beside me.

"Aye, I know it wasn't. I've been through some similar shit, less desert though, so ya win there. Tara just doesn't want to lose ya. It'd different when she knows we men shoot and drink, I guess." He sighed and looked over at me. I sighed and hung my head. "I was tired of fighting, to be honest, but it hurt to have Tara doubt me and ridicule me in front of everyone like a child." Chibs nodded and remained silent, letting me vent about our childhood and even Jax and Tara's shit. Finally, I fell silent after talking more than I had in the last month.

"Ya know, most people charge to listen this much." He smiled over at me and I felt my heart quicken. "I'm just kidding. It's hard coming back, especially when there's a lot of shit going on here. We weren't expectin that or we neva would have let the party happen." I laughed at his comment.

"Well, I appreciate you not intentionally holding a party for a drive-by." I said, still laughing.

"Aye, laugh it up, Rambo." He stood up and brushed off the seat of his pants before extending a hand to help me up. I grabbed his hand and my heart quickened yet again, heating up my stomach and cheeks. He looked down at me and released my hand. My hair had fallen in my face, but he gingerly reached up and brushed it behind my ear. I felt a shiver down my spine.

"Shouldn't we get back to the clubhouse? I need to check on Tara and apologize for yelling at her." I said in a whisper. Chibs dropped his hand slowly and bit his lip.

"Aye, that's probably a good idea, sergeant." He said just as quietly. Damn. I was in trouble with this one.

**CHIBS POV**

I followed Ana back to the clubhouse, cursing myself for not making a move. At the same time, it was probably a wise choice to leave the first move up to her to keep my ass in one piece.

We pulled into the lot slowly as there were three police cruisers lighting it up with their blues. We parked and made our way into the clubhouse to see what the damage was. Luckily, none of ours had been hurt, and by the look of it, the thug was nowhere to be seen. Unfortunately we had gotten pretty good at hiding bloodshed. Ana went straight to Tara and gave her a big hug. I grinned stupidly at their bonding.

"Chibs, I wouldn't even go there, brother." Said Tig walking up to me as I got the stupid grin off my face.

"Aye," I said, not taking my eyes off of the blonde haired beauty. "I think I'd have to kick ya ass if ya tried." Tig just looked at me and shook his head, cover his face with both hands. I knew it was a long shot and she was almost a hundred percent anti-son, but I had to try. Unless I was getting weak on scotch tolerance, I thought she might have felt something at the pond.

Tig gave up and walked off with a muttered, "Stupid Scot" comment. After the police left the clubhouse and things had calmed down some, I was about to walk over to Ana when Jax intercepted me. He followed my gaze and shook his head.

"Brother, it's your funeral." He said with a chuckle. "Clay called emergency church while you were gone. The thug's a mystery. He's brown, but doesn't have a kutte or any affiliated tattoos. Hap took the body out to Oswald's to do away with it." I nodded, finally turning my attention to Jax. "Look," he said running his hand through his hair, "some of our guests, mainly the 9mm toting soldier, aren't going to be happy but we're on lockdown at least through the night. Tara's telling her now, but keep an eye on her. Neeta is bringing Abel soon so Tara will have him to watch and Ana doesn't need to be running off. Tara can't take the stress right now, not really in the condition." My eyes widened with shock.

"Really? Jacky boy tha's great! How far along is she?" I asked, clapping him on the back.

"Not far, just don't say anything, no one is supposed to know. Hell, we haven't even told Abel yet." He said giving me a swift hug before taking Tara by the hand and leading her back to his room. I took the opening to go talk to Ana again, but she didn't look happy at all.


	5. Chapter 5

**ANA'S POV**

I watched Jax lead Tara back to his room and rolled my eyes. I should have just gone home, now I was stuck in the son's clubhouse until god knows when. I blinked as I noticed Chibs walking over to me. I tried to breathe, but his smile was pissing me off even more.

"What the hell are you smiling at?" I snapped as he pulled up a chair and sat down in front of me. I didn't seem to phase him.

"Ay, now it could be worse. At least you aren't in the desert and we've got more free alcohol." He said, waving a crow eater over and asking for two beers. She winked at him and wiggled her way over to the bar. For some reason, that only pissed me off more. She came back and leaned down low, almost spilling her boobs all over Chibs' head.

"Skank." I said loudly, taking one of the beers. She turned and looked at me. "Oh, I said thanks." Chibs laughed and opened his beer and handed it to me as he took mine for his own.

"Look, I know ya don't wanna be here, but its protocol. Whether you like it or not, you're family." Chibs grinned sympathetically at me. I knew he was trying to help, but this wasn't who I was. Even before I left Charming, I hated the club. All the pointless violence and the rowdy guys tainted the small town feel. Tara never saw it the way I did, at least not until she moved to Chicago for school, but look where she was now.

Somehow, Chibs made me feel relaxed, despite who he was and what was going on. I leaned back against the chair and finished off my beer quickly. If I had to be here all night, I sure as hell wasn't going to be sober.

"Well, are you going to be a gentleman and get me another drink or what?" I said, winking at Chibs. He grinned and went over to the bar and got four more beers. I raised my eyebrows as he walked back. "You wouldn't be trying to get me drunk would you?" Chibs shook his head.

"You're doing a good enough job of that on your own, miss." I shrugged and laughed, starting on another beer. A half an hour or so later, we had gone through two six packs together and I was well on my way to making bad decisions.

**CHIBS' POV**

We had moved to a couch while we were drinking and talking about random shit. She asked about Scotland and Ireland and I asked about Iraq. Looking into her eyes as she told me about the friends she'd lost and the crazy shit she'd seen, I decided it was probably a good idea to steer clear of that conversation for now.

"So," I started, noticing a slight slur to my speech. "What are you going to do now that you're back?" She looked at me hazily and shrugged.

"I haven't really figured it out yet, to be honest. I'm just trying to adjust." She laid her head on my shoulder, sending a warm feeling through me. I knew she was drunk, so I didn't react. "What are you smiling about now?" she asked. "I've never seen such a smiley Scot."

"Aye? Just how many Scots have you seen?" I teased. She laughed and held up a single finger. I shook my head with amusement. For such a hard-ass, she really loosened up with a few beers. Well, I guess for her size six beers and her vodka from earlier was quite a lot.

"Where's the loo?" She asked, sitting up. Now she was the one with a silly grin. I had to admit, it was really cute. I started giving her directions and she put a finger to my lips, sending shocks through me. "I didn't understand a word of that. You're just going to have to show me." She stood up and grabbed my hand.

I led her down to my room and opened the door, stepping aside so she could go in first. She thanked me and went in the small bathroom, closing the door behind her. I stood at the door leading from the hall to my room and lit a cigarette. Maybe the nicotine would distract me from the bed that seemed to be glowing in a heavenly light. I wasn't going to take advantage of this girl while she was drunk.

A few minutes passed and I finished my cigarette, throwing the butt into the ashtray on the table by the door. I heard the water running in the bathroom and waited patiently for her to come out. My phone started vibrating just as she came sauntering up to me. I looked down and saw that it was Jax asking where we were. I quickly replied and Jax responded just as fast: "Okay never mind ;)" I laughed, smartass kid.

Ana reached up and took my phone, closing it and setting on the table by the ashtray. I grinned as she grabbed me by my kutte and pulled me further into the room.

"Well, are you going to close the door?" she asked, running her hand down the zipper of my leather jacket. I said I wasn't going to take advantage of her, but it seemed she flipped the script.

"Do I need to?" I asked with a smirk. She shrugged and mentioned an audience. I closed the door and locked it behind me. Turning back to Ana, I saw her smiling brightly. She grabbed the collar of my jacket and pulled down gently, bringing my head down closer to her level.

**ANA'S POV**

With his face closer to mine, I could smell the seductive alcohol and cigarettes on his breath as I inhaled. I looked into his eyes for a second before kissing him deeply. He returned the favor as he wound his fingers into my hair. I pulled back from him, catching my breath.

"Ya don't have to." He said, resting his forehead on mine. I looked up at him and grinned before spinning him around and giving him a light shove. I held on and followed as his back hit the bed. He moaned a little as I straddled his waist and kissed him again. I slipped my tongue lightly into his mouth, thoroughly engulfed in his taste.

**CHIBS POV**

I was pinned beneath her as we made out. My jeans started to feel uncomfortably tight in the crotch. She smelled like honey and beer and her soft hair was tickling my face. She lowered herself on to my chest, and I seized the opportunity and rolled over. She laughed once from shock and reached up to remove my kutte as I kissed he velvet soft neck. She let out a little moan and I smiled against her skin.

Ana made quick work of my kutte, holster, jacket, and shirt. She ran her hand from my waist to my neck and kissed my chest. Her hands weren't as soft as her neck, but I welcomed her touch.

"I think we're a little uneven," she whispered in my ear before biting it softly.

**ANA'S POV**

I arched my back as Chibs ran his hands below my shirt, taking it off over my head. I caught him bite his bottom lip as he looked at my chest. Letting him enjoy the view, I reached back and undid my bra. He smiled as I handed him the lacy black bra.

"I don't really think it'd look as good on me." He said with a wink. I laughed and rolled my eyes.

"Shut up." I said, pulling his mouth to mine. His hand cupped my breast as we kissed more and more intensely. I reached down and undid his belt and jeans. He climbed off of the bed and gingerly took my boots off, and then his. He paused for a minute as I lifted my hips up to let him remove my leggings. I raised my eyebrows and wiggled my ass a little.

He smiled and moved ahead with undressing me and stepping out of his own jeans and boxers. I propped up on my forearms as I watched him look at me. His phone started vibrating loudly on the table and I glared at him. After a minute of just looking each other up and down, I raised a finger and motioned him back to the bed.

He obliged and we had hot, sloppy, drunk sex.

And then we had sex again.

**CHIBS'S POV **

After the third round of sex, Ana rolled off of me panting lightly. She stared at the ceiling and shook her head. I smiled and got up and put on a pair of flannel pants. I heard Ana's breathing even out and I made my way across the room as quietly as possible. Checking my phone, I saw that Jax had called me.

"Shite," I muttered, quietly exiting the room. I made sure to lock the door behind me as Ana was lying naked in my bed. Walking out to the bar, I saw Jax and Bobby sitting at the opposite end. I helped myself to a bottle of Scotch and walked over to them.

"Nice of you to join us." Bobby said with a snort. I raked the hair out of my face and took a drink from the bottle.

"Aye, I was a bit preoccupied. What in tha Hell couldn't wait until tomorrow?" I said with a yawn.

Jax looked at me and sat his beer down. "The Irish. They called at meet at seven out at the warehouse."

"Jacky boy, I think this could have waited until morning." I said, setting the scotch down. Jax laughed and pointed up to the clock over chapel. "Jesus Christ." I shouted as I walked back to my room. It was six fifteen.

I hurried to get ready as quietly as possible and grabbed my kutte off the chair. I was closing the door when I doubled back and kissed Ana on the forehead. When I made it out to my bike, I shook my head. That damn woman was under my skin. Deep.


	6. Chapter 6

**ANA'S POV**

I woke up to someone pounding on the door. It took me a couple minutes to get my bearings, but I slowly covered myself in a sheet off the bed and walked to the door. Flinging it open, I saw Tara standing in the doorway holding Jax's son Abel. She looked annoyed and tired.

I groaned as I closed the door back, putting up my index finger to tell her to hold on. I looked around the room for my clothes and found everything but my shirt. Tara knocked on the door again, seconds before opening it to see my in my leggings, boots, and bra. She rolled her eyes and opened a drawer.

"Here, just put this on. You can look for your tank later." She threw me a black and red flannel shirt. I put it on and followed her and Abel out to the patio. Tara looked back and me and scoffed.

"You could button it you know, not everyone needs to see your abs and bra." She put Abel down so he could play on the swing set. "I can't believe you. You and Chibs, seriously?" Her bitching was getting on my nerves and didn't help my hangover. I threw my hands up and shook my head.

"Where the hell do you get off telling me who I can and can't hook up with?" I hissed quietly so Abel couldn't hear. "Jax isn't exactly an alter boy. What do you have against Chibs?" I glared at her and put my hands over my eyes trying to block out the sun.

"Oh, I don't know Ana, how about the fact that he's old enough to be our father?" She spat. I laughed and sat down.

"Seriously? For a doctor, you really suck at math. He would have been like fifteen when I was born." I looked at Tara and sighed. "What's really bothering you. If it really is Chibs then don't even answer."

"Ana, you've always steered clear of the club, remember? You're my little sister and I don't want you getting caught up with this." She motioned around the lot. "You don't know what it's like. Jax is trying to change it, but it's not there yet." I still wasn't convinced, nor did I want her opinion on my sex life.

"Jesus Christ, Tara I'm not a kid anymore. I've been responsible for the loss of my bothers and sisters in arms. I've seen." I stopped, choking back the horrible things coming to mind. Tara nodded slowly and put her hand on my shoulder.

"I just don't want you to get hurt." She said quietly. I nudged her in the side and smiled weakly. "By the way I'm going to need you to stick around Charming for a while."

I looked at her and cocked my head to the side. She smiled and pulled out a picture from her back pocket. I looked down and saw black and white sonogram with a tiny little peanut looking blip in the middle. I brought it up closer to my face to get a better look.

Tara laughed, "Rubbing your eye on it isn't going to make it any more detailed. That's your little niece or nephew." I looked at her and started stomping my feet with excitement.

"WHAT? You couldn't have maybe told me this as soon as I got off the plane! You could have tried, Hey Ana, I'm preggers and you're going to be an aunt." I shrieked and threw my arms around her neck. She patted my arm and coughed that I was choking her. I let go immediately. "Sorry, I forgot you're made of glass." Tara cut her eyes and me and took the picture back just as the club pulled back into the lot.

Something about Tara's news made me see the club in a slightly different light. As I watched the sons get off their bikes and clown around together, I realized that no matter what happened, this little baby would be protected and loved by them all. I could almost see what Piney described when he said it wasn't a club so much as a family.

I looked around and noticed Chibs' bike was in line, but he wasn't outside with the others. "Hey, I'll catch you later," I told Tara as I walked down to the line of bikes. I saw Tig and walked up to him to ask about Chibs. He looked at me and rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably.

"He's in there cleaning up. He's fine, just" I didn't wait to hear the rest of his explanation. I walked straight to his room and found the door locked. I called for him to open the door with no success. I took a deep breath and pounded on the door for a few minutes. When he finally opened it, he was holding a wet rag to his side. As I looked at him, the rag went from white to mostly red. I stepped inside and closed the door behind me.

"Lay down." I said curtly. He frowned at me, but did as I said. I noticed him wince as his back hit the bed. "I don't want to hurt you any worse than I have to, so don't tell me what happened until I'm done." I caught him grin out of the corner of my eye as I grabbed the first aid kit he had brought in. After dressing what looked to be a knife wound, I turned to him and shook my head.

"Wha? It's nothing, just a flesh wound." He said nonchalantly. I threw the washcloth into the trashcan with force and looked back at him. "Okay, so maybe I met the wrong end of a knife, but really, ya should see the other guy." I covered my face with my hands and groaned.

"Yeah? I don't give a shit about the other guy. I'm starting to tolerate you, so I'd rather you not show up with a new flesh wound every time you come back from leaving me alone in bed." I said, letting my annoyance bleed through my tone.

**CHIBS' POV**

I could tell Ana was upset, but I couldn't tell if she was pissed or worried. I reached out and took her hand. We sat in silence for a few minutes before she stood up slowly.

"I can't," she said quietly.

I watched her walk to the door and pause. I sighed and felt unnervingly bothered by the sight of her leaving. She didn't look back as she turned the knob.

"Ana?" her head dropped, still looking away. "Don't leave like that." I got up and walked over towards her. She inhaled deeply and shook her head. I put my hand on her shoulder, urging her to turn around. I felt her shudder as she exhaled. She turned slowly and I saw tears running down her cheeks. "Aw, Ana, come 'ere. I'm good, I swear."

She shoved me back away from her. I felt my anger start to rise and I threw my hands up. "What do ya want from me?"

"What do I want?" She said loudly. She laughed darkly and slid down against the door. Her arms were crossed over her knees and she hid her face behind them. "Briana." She whispered.

"Wha'?" I said, still reeling from her overreaction to a cut I was fine dealing with by myself.

"Sergeant Briana McClure. That's what I want from you. I want you to bring her back. I want her family in New York to forgive me for letting her die. I want to un-break the promise I made to her when we deployed." She sobbed and curled up tighter. For the first time, she looked as small as she really was. Her confidence and personality made her seem larger than life since I first saw her get out of Tara's car. I felt like shit for being mad at her. I slowly got down on the floor next to her, mindful of the gash on my side.

"Sweetheart, you can't blame yourself like tha'." I said softly as I wrapped my arm around her. She shook her head and sighed.

"Chibs, you don't understand. She was my best friend." She said laying her head on my shoulder and closing her eyes. "We were on patrol, just like we were every other day. I heard a weird noise over in this alley, so I went to check it out. Briana told me to call it in and wait for back up, but I didn't." I watched her lip quiver as she paused.

"So, she followed me and there was just this cat. A fucking cat playing with a can. Briana looked over at me and laughed. She loves cats. Loved. Anyways, then the bullets came pouring down at us and I ducked for cover. I called out for her as I returned fire. She never responded. Once backup came and the firefight was over, I found her. She looked like she was still smiling about the fucking cat." I hugged her to me and kissed her hair.

"Ana, I'm sorry." I whispered. My phone started ringing, but I couldn't imagine tearing myself away from her. Moments later someone was pounding on the door. Ana jumped up with alarm and hurried into the bathroom. I climbed up off the floor and flung the door open.

"Chibs, do you still have the number for that blonde we met in Stockton last week? I was really," Tig stopped talking as he saw my scowl. He laughed, "We're you two, ya know?" He made a tongue in cheek gesture just as I swung and hit him in the right temple. He fell against the doorframe and swore loudly.

**Okay, so this chapter had its ups and downs. Please review, I'd really like your feedback! There's a lot planned for Ana and Chibs down the road with some sweet moments coming up for Tara and Ana as well. **


	7. Chapter 7

**ANA'S POV**

I heard Tig and Chibs arguing and thought about going in there to break them up, but I couldn't urge my legs to move. I looked in the mirror and shook my head. I still looked like the same me from before deployment. My hair was still long and blonde, my eyes were still green, but I saw the red scar on my neck from getting grazed that day. I ran my finger over it and felt the pain in my chest.

"Ana?" Chibs said from the other side of the door. I inhaled and exhaled slowly before splashing water on my face. I patted it dry and opened the door. Chibs was sitting on the bed picking a string off of his kutte. I sat down beside him and looked at my hands in my lap.

"Are you," Chibs started to ask. I knew he was going to ask if I was okay so I cut him off.

"Please don't ask me that question. I've lied about that answer so many times. Don't ask me to lie to you." I said, not looking at him. He wrapped a leather-clad arm around me and kissed my hair. I rested my head on his shoulder and we sat like that for a few minutes, neither of us saying a word.

A knock came on the door and Chibs sighed as he crossed the room to open it. Tara was standing in the doorway smiling. Her smile faded as she looked from Chibs to me. She didn't dare to ask what was wrong.

"Gemma is having a dinner tonight and we're going to announce our news. I know you both know already but it would mean a lot to have you both there." She looked over at me. "Ana, you can ride with me if you want." I shook my head as I saw Chibs raise his eyebrow, slightly offended.

"We're fine Tara. I'll be there." I said smiling at Chibs cocky expression behind Tara's back. Tara looked at him and it disappeared. She pursed her lips and waited for his answer.

"What? I can't ride with you?" He said with a fake frown. I laughed, causing him to smile over at me. Tara looked at him impatiently. "Aye, of course I'll be there." He said hugging her with one arm. She nodded and rolled her eyes as she left.

"She was probably afraid you'd bleed all over her car." I said, pointing at his side. He grinned and shrugged his shoulders. I watched him as he looked down at his watch.

"I gotta go," he said gruffly. "We've got church. Are you goin ta stay here or do ya want me to pick ya up before we go ta Gemma's?" He asked pausing at the door. I looked at him with surprise.

"We're off lock down?' I asked getting up from the bed. He laughed and nodded.

"Sadly I can't hold you hostage anymore." He said with a grin.

"Well, you aren't the worst person to be holed up with. Pick me up on your way to Gemma's, I'm going home and taking a long, steamy, wet shower." I said as I leaned up against him. He bit his lip and looked down at me.

"Tha was cruel, miss." He said as we walked down the hall together. As he walked towards their "chapel" and I walked towards the door I called back to him.

"Hurry and I might still be in there." I said with a wink. I turned and headed to my bike, imagining his reaction. I headed home with a smile.

**CHIB'S POV**

With the bang of the gavel I ran to my room, changed out of my still bloody clothes and headed out to my bike. I heard Tig laugh as I blew past him.

"Either going to get more whiskey or more pussy." I laughed and flipped him off before the door closed behind me. We had long since made up from our tussle earlier.

I broke every speed limit on the roads as I rode over to Ana's house. The thought of her in a shower was driving my bike more than I was; more than that though, I was looking forward to her smile since she was so sad earlier. I pulled into the driveway and saw her open the door, fully dressed and ready to head to Gemma's. I made a show of looking disappointed, but I was really enjoying her smile and her legs in her blue dress.

Either I was getting sick or I was really falling for this girl. Normally I would have left if the broad was already out of the shower.

We got to Gemma's before most of the club. She took my hand as I helped her off of the bike. She was smiling as we walked hand in hand to Gemma's door. I rang the bell and waited. Ana rotated to she was in front of me and looked me in the eye.

"Thank you for listening earlier. No one else here knows that or would really understand, so don't say anything, okay?" She said as her smile faded a little. I nodded as I caressed her face with my hand and kissed her. It wasn't like the night of crazy sex. This time she was really kissing me, and I could feel the walls she built up around herself crumble a little as she kissed me back.

**ANA'S POV**

Sometime during our kiss, Gemma had opened the door. Neither of us noticed until she cleared her throat. I pulled back, smiling as I turned to look at her.

"Get a room." She said stepping aside to let us inside. Chibs looked over at her and grinned.

"Ya offering one of yours up?" He said laughing as I elbowed him lightly. I immediately regretted it.

"Shit, I'm sorry is that your cut side?" I said looking up at him with a sick feeling. I knew what it felt like to have a fresh wound hit. He shook his head and I let out a sigh of relief.

"No, darlin' it's the other side." He said as he pulled me in closer and draped his arm over my shoulder.

Gemma gestured over to the living room and looked at us. "You can make yourself at home but keep all your clothes on. I don't want to be cleaning up." She started until I laughed, holding up a hand.

"I got it, Gemma. No sex on your furniture." She nodded once and walked back towards the kitchen laughing. We sat on the loveseat and watched Abel playing on the rug as everyone else showed up during the next twenty or thirty minutes.

Once everyone was there, Gemma called that dinner was ready and we all headed into the dining room, sitting at the massive table. Tara and Jax sat across from us with Opie and Juice beside them and Bobby and Tig beside us. Clay sat at the head of the table, leaving a chair for Gemma at the opposite end. Happy had called that he wasn't able to make it, so we started to put food on our plates before Gemma told Clay to say grace.

He groaned but bowed his head. We all followed suite as he delivered the shortest prayer in the history of religion. I raised my head back up after amen and watched Chibs cross himself out of the corner of my eye. He caught me looking at him and grinned. Jax cleared his throat and we both looked over at him. He rolled his eyes and laughed.

"If you two are done eye fucking, Tara and I wanted to tell everyone something important." I watched as Gemma leaned forward with a serious look on her face. Jax took a deep breath, building tension to annoy Gemma on purpose. "Tara's pregnant." He said with a smile as Tara nodded her head.

Gemma clapped and went around to them and hugged them each around the neck. "Oh, congratulations! I'm gonna be a grandma again!" She said sitting back down. Clay, Opie and Juice congratulated them both and everyone started eating. In a brief moment of silence Tig finally clapped, awkwardly delayed from everyone else. He stopped when everyone stared at him.

"Wait, is yours Jax?" Tig said in mock seriousness. I grabbed a roll and chucked it at him. "Hey! I'm just kidding!" He said with a laugh. "Seriously though, that's great. I'm happy for you both."

I went back to eating when everyone had a good laugh. I was taking a drink of beer when Bobby started talking.

"So when are you two making an announcement, Chibs?" Bobby said leaning forward and looking down the table at us. I choked on my beer, trying not to spit it out.

"Aye, keep on Bobby. It's not me ya got to worry about kickin ya ass." Chibs said with a smile as he looked from Bobby to me. I nodded and leaned forward.

"I specialized in night tactics, so I wouldn't sleep too lightly if you keep on, Bobby." I said with as serious of a face as I could muster. Everyone laughed and started talking about Tara and Jax's baby as we finished eating. I was joining in every now and then, settling in to a family I never wanted but now, in this short time, couldn't imagine life without.


	8. Chapter 8

After we left Gemma's, we headed out of Charming for a cruise since the weather was just right. Chibs stopped by a convenience store to pick up a pack of cigarettes and top off the bike just outside of town, and I stayed outside with the bike. Just as I was putting the nozzle back in the gas pump, three guys pulled into the station on crotch rockets. I shook my head and got back on Chibs' Harley so we could get back on the road as soon as he came out.

"Hey baby, you might be more comfortable over here." Said one of the guys that had just pulled in. He was redheaded, pale and obviously younger than me. I looked over at him and shook my head with a laugh.

"Aw, come on sweetheart, you look like you like to have a good time." He walked over towards me and I started to get annoyed.

"Look, you're not my type and I'm not interested." I said calmly. I kept my eyes on him as he leaned up against the gas pump. He chewed his gum obnoxiously and took another step towards me. He was royally pissing me off.

"Babe, you can't say you aren't interested when you haven't even tried yet." He put a hand on the leather seat directly behind me ass. I looked at him and smiled.

"You have three seconds to take your hand off the bike, walk back to your own piece of shit, and mind your own fucking business." I said, keeping my tone even. He smiled and nodded.

"Yeah? I don't think that sounds like much fun. How about this?" He said, moving his hand to my thigh. I let go of any calm I was holding on to and reacted immediately.

**CHIBS' POV**

I walked out of the store to find Ana standing over a pale redheaded guy. He was laying on the ground with his arm bent behind and above him as Ana bent his wrist back towards his shoulder. As I hurried over, I also noticed that his nose was bleeding profusely.

"Bitch you'll pay for this. It's not my fault you're hanging out at a gas station looking like a slut." The guy spat at her as his buddies looked on. My blood ran hot beneath my skin as Ana laughed. She let go of his arm and he scurried to his feet.

"Hey are you ready?" She asked me with a smile. I looked at her with surprise. "It's nothing. Boys acting like flea bags that needed to be taught not to touch pretty blondes without permission." She explained, kissing me on the cheek. I was going to leave it at that and get back on the road, but then the prick decided he wanted the last word.

"You better watch your back, whore." He said laughing with his friends as he tried to stop his nose from bleeding. Ana grabbed my arm as I got back off my bike, but I shook her loose.

"Ay, asshole. Ya need to apologize. Now." I said, trying to hold myself back from him. Ana asked me to just get back on the bike, but I ignored her.

"Yeah? Maybe she needs to apologize for breaking my nose. What's it to you? A what hundred buck fuck and you're trying to be a tough guy?" He laughed, turning back to his friends. I grabbed him by the front of his shirt and threw him against the concrete column beside the gas pump. His smile disappeared as I pressed the muzzle of my 1911 to his temple.

"Tha next time ya say a word, it better be a fuckin apology." I said, pressing the gun deeper into the side of his head. I felt him shaking.

"I'm…I'm sorry, ma'am. Won't hahappen again." He stuttered. I let go of him and brought my gun down to my side. He and his friends took off quickly as I stood and watched. I felt Ana's hand over mine.

"You can put it away, Chibs." She said sweetly. I looked down at her hand and moved to holster the gun. She dropped her hand back to her side and nodded towards the Harley.

"Let's just go, okay? I'm sure the clerk called the cops already." She said, looking into the store window. I nodded and got back on the bike, holding out a hand to help her climb on since she was wearing a dress. I took a deep breath and made a change of plans, no longer in the mood to ride around aimlessly.

**ANA'S POV**

We pulled up to a rustic looking cabin about an hour after we left the gas station. Chibs turned off the Harley and took his helmet as I climbed off. He watched me for a second before swinging his leg over and getting off. He hadn't said a word since we left the gas station, and I was starting to get aggravated.

Chibs took my hand and led me up the steps and into the cabin. Inside I could tell that it was a son's place. There were old pictures hung up on the walls of the club from years ago. I was looking around at all of the pictures as Chibs walked into the kitchen.

"Want one?" He asked, returning from the kitchen with a bottle of scotch and two glasses. I looked at him and shrugged.

"Sure." I said flatly. I took the glass and went back to looking at the pictures, acutely aware that he was watching me. I sighed and turned around, leaning against the back of a plaid couch. He was looking me in the eye, but I couldn't read his expression.

"What?" I asked sharply. I was tired of the awkward silence. Chibs looked hurt by the edge to my voice.

"I decided to bring ya here so we could have some time alone. I know we haven't really gotten a lot of time together without the club." He walked over to me and took my glass from me, setting it on the glass-topped end table beside the couch. "I'm not used ta this. I'm not used to you." He said, grabbing my hand and kissing it softly.

"Fillip, what's wrong?" I asked leaning forward and resting my forehead on his. A smile came across his face before he kissed me softly on the lips.

"Ana, it's been years since I've felt like this. Since I've felt anything with a woman. It's been fucking and leaving and that's it. Call me crazy, but I don't want to think of life without ya anymore." He said so quietly I could barely hear him. I took a deep breath and leaned back so I could look him in the eye.

"Then don't." I said, surprising both Chibs and myself. I was shocked and concerned with how quickly I was falling for him. He grinned and kissed me again. I held him to me and kissed him more deeply. For the first time since I deployed last summer, I was truly happy.

**CHIBS' POV**

I woke up to Ana sleeping with her head on my chest and smiled. She looked innocent and beautiful. I reached over to the bedside table and let out a sigh of relief. I hadn't missed any calls. I sat the phone back down and traced my fingers over the tattoo of a hummingbird on her shoulder blade. Soon, I fell into a deep sleep for the first time sober in years.

**ANA'S POV**

We stayed holed up in that cabin for three days. We had only left once to go to Charming and get my bike and some clothes. Once we got back, we were just together. We would talk and sit out on the porch drinking coffee just enjoying the serenity of the cabin. That's where I was sitting, waiting on Chibs to wake up when I heard the distinct roar of a motorcycle headed up the driveway. I pulled down on my denim shorts and watched as Jax and Opie pulled up and parked beside our bikes.

"Morning." I said as they walked up on the porch. Opie smiled and said hello as Jax looked off towards the bikes. "Do y'all want some coffee? He's still asleep." I said, standing to get myself some more coffee from the kitchen. They both declined, but followed me inside. I poured myself another cup and leaned against the counter.

"Tara's been trying to call you." Jax said flatly. He was looking at me with a blank expression. I nodded. I had seen her call and had messaged her that I was only available for emergencies. I set my coffee down on the table and walked back to the guest room where we had been staying. I was tired of the awkward silence and knew they were here to see Chibs, not me drinking coffee.

"Hey," I whispered in his ear as I kissed his cheek. He stirred a little and tried to pull me down into the bed. I smiled against his skin and shook my head slowly. "Two of your brothers are in the kitchen wanting to talk to you." I said, kissing him again. He groaned and rolled over to his back, reaching up to kiss me again.

I grudgingly moved over to his backpack and threw him a pair of jeans and a shirt. He got dressed quickly and pulled on his kutte before walking into the kitchen. I sat down on the bed, knowing that our vacation had come to an end. As I was finishing packing, Chibs walked in with a tired expression. He kissed me on the top of my head as I handed him his bag.

"Back to the real world, love." He said as he rubbed my shoulders. "We gotta go outta town for a run, but I should be back tomorrow night. Here," he said handing me a piece of paper. "It's the address to my house. You're welcome to stay there if ya want." I gave him a hug before picking up my own bag and heading out to my bike.

"Hey, Chibs?" I called out as he walked over to his own bike. He looked over at me and smiled. "Be careful, okay? No more injuries and just, be careful." I said with a weak smile. I had a heavy feeling in my gut, but I brightened up a little when I saw him smile brightly back at me.

"Aye, no injuries." He said, walking back towards me. Jax and Opie leaned back and waited semi-patiently. Chibs caressed my face gently and kissed me again. "I love you, Ana."

He didn't wait for a response, but kissed me one more time, got back on his bike, and followed Jax down the driveway with Opie right behind them. I felt the heat in my cheeks as I put my helmet on. As crazy and reckless as it was, I was falling in love with a Son.

**Things seem to be going really well for Ana and Chibs. Hope y'all don't mind some fluff, but I was feeling sweet tonight. Reviews are always welcome :) Hopefully I can update again sometime tomorrow.**


	9. Chapter 9

"Hey, I'm home." I called as I dropped my bag by the front door. Tara's car was in the driveway, so I knew she was home. She walked out of the hallway and scowled at me. "What?" I asked surprised at her scowl.

"You could have called to let me know you were coming. You scared me to death." Tara said as she took the white towel off of her head. I smiled and followed her to her room. I jumped on the bed, careful not to let my shoes touch the bed; it was a pet peeve we shared.

"Where's Abel going to be while they're out on a run?" I asked as I watched her flip through her hangers in the closet. She turned and looked at me for a second.

"Gemma is watching him this time. Why?" She eyed me suspiciously. I smiled and hopped off the bed and stood by her staring into the closet.

"We're having a girls weekend." I said as I pulled out a green button down and handed it to her. She laughed and pulled it on as I threw her a pair of acid wash jeans.

"You haven't even been around much since you got back and you want me to drop everything and have a girls weekend?" She asked, pulling her jeans on. I smiled when I noticed that her stomach had the slightest little bump.

"I know, I'm sorry about that." I said as I sat back down on the bed. She sighed and smiled at me, doing a turn so I could see the finished outfit. I grinned back.

"It's okay. I get that you and Chibs have hit it off. I just miss you, sis." She said, her smile fading on the edges. I looked down at my nails and started picking at my cuticle.

"I've been spending a lot of time with him, I know. I really do like him, but that's not the only reason I haven't been around. Tara, it's hard for me to be back here." I said as I looked around what used to be our dad's room. "It's like no matter where I go I'm reminded of someone that's gone forever." Tara frowned and sat down next to me.

"Ana, I'm sorry. I miss Dad to." She rested her head on my shoulder and we sat in silence for a minute. I took a deep breath and decided to let everything out since we were already talking about deep shit.

"I guess I have to forgive Jax now." I said looking up at the ceiling. Tara jerked back and I caught her looking at me incredulously out of the corner of my eye. "I'm tired of holding grudges and I see how happy he makes you. Not to mention he's the father of my niece or nephew and a brother to a guy I'm really into." Tara closed her eyes and a smile spread across her face slowly. Despite how hard it was for me to admit it, I knew Jax had changed since I left Charming.

"We've all grown up a lot since then, Ana. I honestly can't believe you've hated him this long for protecting you." I narrowed my eyes and looked at her. I was ready to forgive him, not forget what he'd done.

"Tara, I get that he thought what he did was right, but it scarred me for a long time. That was the first time I'd ever seen someone die, much less be killed." I took a deep breath remembering my prom night.

I had been ecstatic to be going to the prom with the captain of the football team, considering I wasn't exactly popular since I didn't cheer or play sports. We had left the prom early and gone and parked at the lake. I had been so excited about just being in his presence, I didn't think about why he'd taken me to a deserted park in the middle of the night. One thing led to another and he tried to get me to hook up with him. I was a good girl that had barely even kissed a boy, so naturally I was scared shitless.

He told me I was going to have sex with him or he was going to force me to. Somehow he was dumb enough to let me go "freshen up" in the little bathroom area by the picnic tables. That's when I had called Tara, crying and begging for her to come get me. Well, Jax had heard everything and was livid because, at the time, he was like my big brother.

Brandon had wizened up and come to look for me just as I had gotten off the phone. He was pissed and shoved me up against the concrete wall of the bathroom building and started feeling me up. I was little back then and tried my hardest to fight him off, but it didn't happen. He had his hand around my throat and had just finished having his way with me when Jax pulled up on his motorcycle.

I still remember the taste of my tears and my mascara as they ran down my cheeks and onto my lips. Brandon still had his hands on my throat when Jax shot him. He fell against me with blood pouring out of his neck and I was frozen. I didn't scream and I stopped crying by the time Tara got there in her car. Jax and some of the other sons took him off and buried him somewhere. For months everyone was so upset over Brandon going missing and I was completely alone, too scared to say anything and too mad at myself for letting it happen to talk about it with anyone.

Two months later I enlisted and left for basic training. I had only come back to Charming once for my dad's funeral until now.

"Forget about it. It's in the past and like you said, Jax is a different person now." I said with a smile. "Let's go get tattoos." Tara laughed and shook her head.

"Pregnant, remember?" She said putting my hand on her stomach. I sighed and rolled my eyes.

"Okay, then let's go shopping for the baby! We can keep it gender neutral." I said jumping up and pulling her by the hand. "I'll even ride with you! Then we can go get dinner and rent sappy movies!" Tara let me lead her out to the car, stopping only to grab our purses and lock the door.

"I don't know what's gotten into you, but it's nice to have you back Ana." Tara said as she gave me a small hug. We climbed into the car and headed off towards the mall in Lodi.

"It's more like who's gotten into me. Good God, Tara. Do you have any idea how," I started saying until she put up her hand to stop me. "What?"

"I have no desire to have any idea what you were about to tell me." Tara said as she turned back to the road. I stuck out my bottom lip and crossed my arms over my chest. "Really, Ana? You're going to pout? Fine. You can talk about it but I do not want any graphic details." I beamed over at her and told her all about our time up at the cabin.

Once we pulled into the mall parking lot, I finished my story. Tara looked at me after she turned the car off. I looked at her and then looked away quickly. When I looked back, I rolled my eyes at her.

"Why are you staring at me? You said I could tell you and I left out all the good details. For example, he did this one thing with his mouth when I was on top of him and," Tara clapped her hand over my mouth as I finished my sentence.

"That is not why I was staring at you. At all. I'm just happy to see that you're finally falling for somebody. Granted I never expected you to get with a son, but if it had to be any of them, I'm glad it's Chibs." Tara said with a smile as we got out of the car.

We shopped for a couple hours before heading over to a restaurant for dinner. We ate and caught up on everything from the hospital to her hope of getting married to Jax eventually. We were just finishing dinner when my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID and my cheeks got hot. I looked at Tara who nodded, allowing me to break her rule of not answering calls during dinner.

"Hello?" I said smiling like an idiot. Tara laughed quietly as she watched me.

"Aye Ana, what are you up to?" Chibs said with a smile I could hear in his voice.

"Sitting here with Tara, we just finished shopping and eating up in Lodi."

"Sounds fun."

"Yeah, it was nice to have a girls day. Not that I haven't been completely happy holed up with you."

"Yeah? I was wondering for a minute darlin'. I thought I may have bored ya." I laughed and blushed deeper.

"Not yet. Did you call for something?"

"Aye."

"That something is?" I asked with a laugh.

"To hear y'ar voice. We stopped for fuel and I missed ya." He said quietly. I heard Tig in the background yelling obscenities. "I've gotta go but I'll call ya when I can. Later, love."

"Be careful. I'll talk to you later." I closed the phone and realized Tara was crying a little.

"What? What's wrong?" I asked leaning forward against the table. Tara shook her head and smiled.

"It's the damn hormones. I'm just so happy for you. I've never gotten to see you in love before." Tara wiped away her tears and shook her head. I smiled and shrugged.

I guess she had a point.

**Big reveal and some awesome bonding time with Tara. In case you haven't noticed this doesn't really follow and episodes or season plot lines. Regardless, I hope you continue to enjoy and review. I'm working on the next chapter now and it's going to be a doozy.**


	10. Chapter 10

"Ana, are you ever going to wake up?" I rolled over to see Tara standing by my bed. She was fully dressed and looking at me expectantly. I squinted at looked at the clock. It was only eleven o'clock. I planted my head first down in my pillow and groaned.

"What was that?" Tara asked, tearing my pillow out from under my head. I glared up at her.

"Tara, I didn't sleep good. Why are you waking me up? Aren't you supposed to be doing the doctor thing at the hospital today?" I sat up and stared at her. She held a shirt out to me and smiled.

"I already finished my rounds while your lazy butt was sleeping. You get to spend the day with me. This time it's my turn to surprise you." I let out a loud yawn as I reached out and took the shirt from her.

"I really hate surprises, Tara. You know who else surprises people? Terrorists." She rolled her eyes at me and threw a pair of jeggings at my head. Either from my exhaustion or lack of caring, they hit me square in the face, causing Tara to laugh. "You win. Only because you're pregnant and goofy with hormones."

I finished getting dressed and pulled my hair into a high ponytail before walking out to the kitchen and grabbing a protein shake. Tara was standing by the door with her bag in hand. I hung my head in protest and followed her out to the car.

"Are you going to tell me where we're going or not?" I said looking over at her as my head rested on the window. She just laughed and handed me a brown paper bag. I took it from her and looked at her in shock. "Uh, Tara, I'm all for day drinking usually, but it's not even noon. I know you aren't drinking so why are you giving me a bottle of tequila?" She looked over at me and shrugged, obviously struggling to hide a smile. A couple of miles down the road, she looked over at me.

"You may want to start on that if you're going to be buzzed enough to get that tattoo." She said with a billion watt smile. My jaw dropped.

"Really? You're going to sit there with me while I get it and not get anything? Thank you, but I mean isn't that boring?" I said, taking a drink from the bottle. Tara knew from stories that ever since I started getting tattoos after basic training, I had to be semi-buzzed to tolerate the needles. She grinned and shook her head.

"I'm sure it will be just fine. Are you sure you want to get this tattoo though? I mean it's kind of permanent." She said, glancing over at me. I knew she was kidding. I had wanted this tattoo ever since I was a teenager, but other ones kept coming up before I got it.

We pulled into the tattoo shop and I took two more long drinks before I hopped out of the car. I looked down at my shirt. No wonder she had picked a muscle tank.

"Hey John!" Tara called as she walked in and sat down by a tattoo chair. A big guy with a brown and gray beard walked over and gave her a quick hug.

"So, you must be Ana." John said, shaking my hand. I nodded and smiled, feeling a buzz creep over me as I stood there. "Tara told me that you are wanting something like this." He pointed to a drawing table. I walked over and saw exactly what I had dreamed of. It was a large black and gray tree with the branches turning into birds. I jumped back and gave Tara a big hug.

"Thank you so much Tara! This is exactly how I pictured it in my mind." I kissed her on the cheek and turned to John. "Are you ready?" He nodded and I hopped up on the table and pulled my shirt up under my arms.

We were about three hours in when I heard my phone ringing in my bag. I looked over at Tara with what I'm sure was huge eyes. John stopped and looked at me.

"Do you want to stop and get that?" I shook my head and smiled as Tara flipped the phone open and pressed the speaker button. John shrugged and went back to shading on my ribs. Had it not been for the tequila, it would have been unbearable.

"Hello, this is Tara so don't say anything you don't want everyone hearing. You're on speaker, Ana can't hold the phone right now." Tara said walking over closer to me and holding the phone between us.

"Uh, so phone sex is out of tha question? Why can't Ana come to tha phone and what is that noise?" Chibs said with a bit of concern in his voice. I groaned as John got to my bottom rib. The tequila was wearing off but Chibs was a good distraction. I knew I couldn't talk much with him working in such a delicate place.

"Hey babe. Tattoo." I said with a sharp intake as my ribs protested to the needle. I smiled and relaxed when I heard Chibs laugh.

"Right, well I guess that rules out tha phone sex then. I was jus' calling to let ya know we'd be back around eight if ya wanted to come by the clubhouse." Chibs said happily.

"She'll be there. Tell Jax I'll see him then. My phone is charging in the car." Tara said pretending to gag at the phone sex comment.

"Aye, I will. See ya, Love." He said before ending the call as I heard a motorcycle rev in the background. I smiled over at Tara as John moved to a less sensitive spot.

"Isn't he great?" I asked with a girlish sigh. Tara rolled her eyes with a smile and turned back to her magazine without responding. Two hours later we left the tattoo shop after I gave John a big hug and paid him for his work.

"So do you want to go ahead and go to TM or what?" Tara asked with a yawn. I shook my head and yawned as well.

"Nope, I'm not going there with my hair looking like this and I need a nap." Tara must have agreed because she turned down our road and pulled into the driveway quickly. It was just like old times. We piled up in her bed and went to sleep.

I woke up to my phone's alarm clock going off. For the first time ever, I jumped out of bed and started getting ready right away. My shirt from earlier had some ink on it, so I changed into a similar pink shirt and a black bandeau bra. I was already finishing my hair when Tara walked into the bathroom. She shook her head and pushed me out from in front of the sink. I laughed and went into the living room to wait for her.

"Well, there's a first time for everything. I've never seen you beat me getting ready." I nodded and stood up, grabbing her purse and mine.

"Yeah, yeah, you're a slow pregnant woman. I get the point, let's go." She followed me out of the door laughing. I sat up in the seat the whole way to TM and complained about how slow she was driving. She ignored me for the most part and was more than happy when I hopped out of the car after she parked. I looked down at my watch and tapped my foot impatiently. It was a quarter past eight and they weren't here yet. I turned to complain to Tara when I heard motorcycles out on the road. I smiled brightly and tried to look casual as I leaned up against her car.

"Ana, really? You are out of your damn mind." Tara said as she folded her arms across her chest and sat on her back bumper. I looked over and saw that she was smiling over at me. I just shrugged and watched Chibs park his motorcycle.

**CHIBS' POV**

I quickly took off my helmet and got off my bike. Ana was standing by Tara and smiling at me. I smiled, but swallowed hard because of the lies or at least omission that would come later. With croweaters, we never worried about talking or them really caring, but with old ladies it was different. I took Ana in my arms and kissed her soft lips, feeling her smile against my mouth.

"Ay Ana. You look beautiful." I said, kissing her again. She leaned into my chest and wrapped her arms underneath my kutte.

"Hey. You look tired. Rough run?" Ana asked looking up at me with a smile. I shrugged, trying to avoid any details.

"You're not gonna show me you're new ink?" I said with some mock disappointment. With no reservations about the ten other men around the lot, she turned and lifted her shirt up so the black and gray tree and birds were clearly visible on her side. "Nice, looks like it hurt."

Ana shrugged and put her shirt back down, causing Tig to object loudly.

"I had some tequila to help me through it since my old man was out of town." She said, winking up at me. I shook my head and put my arm around her shoulders as we followed Jax and Tara towards the clubhouse.

"So, when tha baby comes are you going to move in ta Jax's house for good?" I asked Tara after finishing off another glass of whiskey. Tara looked up at me with surprise.

"Well, the plan is for me to go ahead and start moving the rest of my stuff tomorrow. I'm sure Ana will be happy to have the house to herself." Tara explained as she looked over at Ana. Ana smiled but it didn't reach her eyes. I got the feeling that she didn't really share Tara's opinion about living there. I put my hand on her thigh and kissed her temple.

"Aye, I'm beat. I'm gonna call it an early night. Ana, ya wanna come with me?" I said with an exaggerated yawn. I was tired but I really just wanted to have some alone time with Ana. She nodded and hugged her sister goodbye before we headed out to the bike.

**ANA'S POV**

Chibs pulled up to a gray one-story house with white shutters. I noticed the lawn was freshly mowed and the yard was even landscaped with well-kept shrubbery. We climbed off the bike and made our way to the front door. He opened the door and stood to the side to let me walk in first. The living room was simple but clean with the basic couch, coffee table and television. Chibs followed me in and closed the door behind him. I turned to ask him where the bedroom was when my phone vibrated in my pocket.

"Hello?" I answered as I sat my purse down on the couch. I watched as Chibs walked past me to the refrigerator, grabbing a bottle of water for each of us.

"Hey Knowles, what the hell are you up to?" My jaw dropped as I recognized the caller's voice. It was Lieutenant Jensen White. He and I had served together in my two most recent deployments, and had a deep friendship.

"Jen! How the hell are you? When did you get state side?" I asked smiling to myself. I took the bottle of water Chibs offered me and thanked him silently with a small nod.

"I got here a couple days ago. Look, Ana, I know this is sudden and I should have called ahead of time but I'm at the airport about to board a plane to Sacramento. I've got to see my brother in Oakland about something and then I thought we could hang before I head back East." Jensen said quickly. I could hear the airport bustling around him in the background.

"Yeah, definitely! My sister's moving her stuff out of the house so you can stay there while you're in town." I said without hesitation.

"Awesome, thanks Knowles! Text me the address, okay? Tomorrow evening okay?" I agreed and said goodbye before ending the call. Chibs was on the couch looking at me expectantly. I sat down next of him and scooted in close.

"Expecting company, Ana?" He asked after giving me a kiss on the side of my head. I nodded and yawned expectantly. I hadn't realized I was so tired.

"My friend Jen is visiting and staying at my house for a couple days." I said closing my eyes and slipping into sleep on his chest.

I woke up to the smell of muffins and coffee. I rolled over and realized Chibs must have moved me to his bed after I had fallen asleep. I took his pillow and inhaled deeply. The distinct mix of cologne, whiskey and smoke made me smile. I looked around the room as I laid in bed for a few more minutes. The bed was covered in a black quilt and gray sheets and there was a dresser on the wall opposite of the closet. I noticed a picture of a young light skinned, multi-racial girl with black curly hair. I squinted and looked closer, wondering silently who it was and why their picture was in his room.

"Ana, breakfast is ready if ya want some." Chibs called from the kitchen, breaking my concentration from the picture. I got up slowly from the bed, walking to the closet to borrow something to wear. I grabbed a charcoal button down and pulled it on over my head. It was big on me, covering all the way down to my mid-thigh. I decided to forego pants and headed out to the kitchen.

**CHIBS' POV**

"That looks better on you than it does on me, darlin." I said taking in the sight that was Ana. She did a small spin and winked at me as she grabbed a muffin.

"I didn't know you cooked, Chibs." She said, taking a second bite of muffin. I laughed and poured her a cup of coffee.

"It's just add water shite so I can almost handle it." I said with a shrug. She graciously took the coffee cup and sat down at my kitchen table. She looked so happy that I almost didn't want to go through with the conversation I had planned on having with her. I walked over to the table and sat down with my cup of coffee as well. She smiled over at me as I took her hand into mine.

"Ana, I really like ya and I don't want to keep shit from you." I said looking her in the eye. She sat her cup down on the table and waited for me to continue. I took a deep breath and wished I could just abandon the conversation. Ana frowned at me and rubbed my hand with her thumb.

"Is this about your daughter?" She asked, looking down at the coffee cup. That question threw me off and I felt my throat tighten. I was worried enough about the club business chasing her off, and now she had found out about Kerrianne somehow. "I saw the picture on your dresser. She looks a lot like you." I sighed, now I couldn't bring up the club stuff, it would be too much at once.

"Yeah, that's my baby girl. Her name is Kerrianne. She's lives in Belfast with her mom Fiona." I said trying to avoid looking at Ana's expression that I'm sure showed so much disappointment.

"Well, she's beautiful. Do you see her much?" Ana asked quietly. I looked up and noticed that she was relaxed and almost smiling. She never stopped surprising me. I swallowed my coffee and looked her in the eyes. They were bright and didn't seem to be frightened off by my daughter.

"I haven't seen her in quite a few years. It's complicated, but luckily I get to talk to her on the phone a few times a year. Ana, I know this is surprising. I wasn't trying to hide her or Fiona, I just hadn't found the right time to tell you yet." Ana nodded and smiled over at me as she grabbed another muffin.

"So you have an ex-girlfriend and a beautiful daughter, it's okay Chibs." She said taking bite of the muffin. I shifted in the chair, suddenly extremely uncomfortable.

"Well, Fiona wasn't just my girlfriend. She's ma wife." I said taking a drink of coffee to conceal my nervous expression.

**ANA'S POV**

I coughed and nearly choked on my muffin. Not only did he have a daughter but also he had been married. I sat the muffin down to relieve the choking risk. I took a deep breath. So he had a past, everyone did. I regained my composure and looked at him, reading the worry all over his face.

"Chibs, stop looking at me like I'm about to run out of the door. Everyone has family and has a past. It's not like you're still married." I said with a chuckle to lighten the mood. Chibs frowned which made me lose my cool I had just regained.

"Ana, love, I'm sorry. It's complicated. Fiona is my past and that's not going to change, but legally, we're still married." My jaw dropped and I looked away from him sharply. I was falling in love with a married man? Fucking wonderful. I stood up and walked to the other side of the kitchen. Chibs didn't move from the table, but watched me with his eyes. "I had to leave Ireland before she and I could really talk about divorce. We're both Catholic as well, so divorce isn't really something we do."

"Oh, you're Catholic, well that makes your secret wife completely okay in my book." I spat at him. He looked down in pain. I hated to see that look in his eye, but I was hurt to. More than that I was pissed at myself. "Fuck, Chibs. You don't think that maybe this is something you should deal with before telling me you fucking love me? What if in some far off time I wanted to be your wife? Would you have maybe told me then?" My vision started to blur as I braced myself on the counter.

"Love, I'm sorry. It's not what ya think. I wasn't trying to hide it from ya. I didn't think I'd fall for ya this fast." Chibs said, walking over and placing his hand on top of mine. I jerked it back and glared at him. His face fell even more. I knew if I stayed there, I would give in.

"I need you to take me home now." I said, storming off to the bedroom and pulling on my pants. He was standing by the door with his head hung as I walked past him and out to his bike. My phone vibrated against my leg, but I ignored it. I was in no mood to talk to anyone.

We pulled into the driveway and I hopped off the bike, handing Chibs his helmet without another word. I looked up and saw Jensen standing on my front step in full battle dress uniform. He dropped his backpack on the step and caught me as I gave him a big hug. He was at least six inches taller than me with dark brown, cropped hair and light green eyes. He gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and sat me back down on the step.

Seeing Jensen calmed me down from the blow up with Chibs, so I turned to wave him over to introduce them. I frowned as I saw him roll his bike back out of the drive and take off. I sighed and turned back to Jensen.

"Sorry, Jen. I didn't expect you until later. Come in!" I said, regaining a smile and opening the door for him. I looked down at my watch and saw it was a quarter past one. I shrugged off the time and grabbed two beers out of the fridge. I wanted to celebrate with Jensen, as well as numb the sting from my fight earlier.

**CHIBS' POV**

I pulled into Teller Morrow and got off my bike, fuming mad. As I slammed my helmet onto the seat, I noticed Jax looking over at me with concern. I didn't feel like talking, but I knew Jax wasn't going to let me off without an explanation.

"Chibs, what's going on?" Jax asked, walking over and leaning on his bike that was parked by mine. I sighed and raked my hand through my hair.

"Fucking shit with Ana blew up this morning. She stayed at my place and saw a picture of Kerrianne. She was fine with that until the shit with Fiona came up. She made me take her home and some fucking guy was standing on the porch waiting for her." I said, getting more pissed as I relived the last ten minutes. Jax looked at me and offered me a cigarette. I took one and lit it, calming down a little with each puff.

"So, who was he?" Jax asked carefully. I took another drag from the cigarette and shrugged.

"No idea, Jacky boy. He was in uniform. Looked like they knew each other pretty good."

"So, you saw him there and just left your girl with him?" Jax asked as he shook his head. I looked at him and threw the cigarette down.

"Aye, didn't want to interrupt their joyous reunion." I said simply. I knew what Jax was thinking, but I didn't want to consider it. I watched Jax as he strapped on his helmet and climbed on his bike.

"Ay, where are you headed off to?" I said eyeing him suspiciously. He smiled with that dark smile of his that usually led to shit popping off and started his Dyna.

"My old lady's house. I gotta finish packing her shit before she gets off work." Jax yelled over the roar of the Harley. He didn't wait for my opinion before flying out of the lot.

**ANA'S POV**

I leaned back on the arm of the couch and stretched my legs out on the couch as Jensen sat on the opposite end. We had finished off the first six-pack and moved on from talking about Briana to talking about Chibs. I had long since gotten past my anger with him and smiled as I told Jensen about him.

"So, he's not gonna be pissed that I'm staying with you while I'm here?" Jensen asked with a mischievous grin. He and I were like brother and sister, and we both kept it that way. I threw a throw pillow at him.

"Don't flatter yourself, Lieutenant. Chibs doesn't really strike me as the jealous type. Least, if he is he doesn't have any room to talk." I said, taking another swig of beer as I felt a twinge of pain from the whole wife ordeal.

I heard the all too familiar roar of a motorcycle getting close to the house and smiled. I didn't move from the couch, ensuring that I didn't look to desperate and forgiving of Chibs. A minute later the door flung open to reveal Jax Teller strolling in like he owned the place.

"Jax?" I said as I sat up straight. "What happened to knocking?" I said as I glared at him. He raised his eyebrow at me before taking a seat in the chair directly across from the couch.

"My old lady still lives here, Ana. Sorry, I'm not used to knocking here." He said with a cocky smirk. I rolled my eyes and curled my legs up underneath me. "Who are you?" He asked looking at Jensen. Jensen looked from Jax to me and stood up.

"Jensen White, nice to meet you." Jen said, extending his hand out to Jax. Jax looked at it for a second before taking it slowly. I saw the veins in his hand, speaking to how strongly he was gripping Jensen's hand. He just smiled back at Jax and waited for him to let go first.

"For the love of God, could you two stop with the macho bullshit? Jensen, this is Jax Teller. He's Tara's uh boyfriend and father of her unborn child. He's also Chibs' brother in the Sons of Anarachy." I looked at Jax who looked semi-pleased with my introduction. "Jax, this is Lieutenant Jensen White. We served together during my last two tours. We've been good friends since he was a sergeant, and even now that he went to the dark side." I said with a forced smile. Jax let go and leaned back in the chair. Jensen sat back down on the couch and an uncomfortable silence fell over the room.

The sound of another motorcycle approaching broke the silence. I stood up and walked into the kitchen. If this is who I thought it was, I was going to need something stronger than beer. A knock came on the door and Jax hopped up and opened it. Chibs was standing there smoking a cigarette. I felt my heart flutter. Something about the look in his eye went straight to my heart.

I walked over and offered him a glass of whiskey. He took it and looked down at me. I smiled and wrapped my arm around his waist. I immediately felt him relax. I heard Jax sigh as he stood up.

"Well, I'm going to the clubhouse. Ana, brotha, I'll see y'all later." Jax said as he headed towards the door. He stopped and pulled Chibs into a brotherly hug before walking out to his bike. I took a deep breath.

"Chibs, babe, this is my good friend Jensen White. We served together. Jensen, this is my boyfriend Chibs." I said, grinning between the two of them. Chibs smiled as he and Jensen shook hands. I was happy to see that my old man was a lot more mature than Tara's.

"What kind of bike do you have?" Jensen asked with a nod to Chibs who was still wearing his riding gloves. Chibs opened the door and Jensen and I followed him out. The three of us spent a couple hours talking bikes and guns before heading back in for more drinks.

"I didn't even know you had a brother in Oakland, Jensen. What made you fly across country so urgently?" I asked passing out drinks before settling down on Chibs' lap. Jensen shifted and looked at me with a serious expression.

"He doesn't live there. He's working out there on a case. He had some questions about AK's so I went and consulted for a couple hours." Jensen said taking a drink.

"Oh, shit yeah. I forgot he's ATF. I guess it's all hush hush, huh?" I took another drink before Chibs patted my butt.

"Sorry, love. I forgot I had ta meet Juice at the shop. Something's wrong with his bike. You coming over tonight?" Chibs asked as he stood and put his gloves back on. I nodded as he kissed my on the cheek and nodded to Jensen.

After he closed the door behind him, I looked at Jensen and smiled.

"So? What do you think?" I said sitting back in the chair Chibs and I had shared. Jensen smiled and shook his head.

"There's no doubt you haven't been in love like that for a long time. Just be careful. He seems cool but that Jax guy seems a little over the edge." He took another swig of beer before we started talking about our last deployment and the girl he'd met on base.

**CHIBS' POV**

I pulled into Teller Morrow again and headed straight into the clubhouse. I walked into chapel and closed the door behind me. My brothers looked at me, waiting to see why I of all people had called emergency church.

"We've got and ATF problem again." I said, sitting down next to Tig.

"Son of a bitch." Clay said as he hit the table with a closed fist.


	11. Chapter 11

**ANA'S POV**

"So, you can stay in my room and I'll take the couch." I said with a smile as I opened my bedroom door and motioned for Jensen to go in. He grinned and tossed his bag on the bed.

"Ana, I'm going straight to sleep. I've got jet leg crawling up my ass. You said you were going to your old man's, don't stay on the couch here on account of me." Jensen said as he looked down at me. I shook my head. "Ana. Go. I'm fine. I don't need a baby sitter and you need to go." I sighed and gave in. I really did want to be with Chibs.

"Fine. Call me if you need anything. Me casa es su casa." I said giving him a quick hug before heading out to my bike. I grabbed my backpack by the door that still had some clean clothes in it and left for Chibs' house.

As I rode by his house, I noticed that his bike wasn't there and all the lights were off. I frowned a little. I had been looking forward to some alone time in his actual bed, but I guess the clubhouse would have to do.

Pulling into the parking lot of TM, I saw Jax and Opie sitting on the picnic table smoking. I parked and walked towards the doors to the clubhouse. I stopped in front of Jax and pulled a shopping bag out of my backpack. As I handed it to him, he looked at me with surprise.

"I thought you were pissed at me." Jax said as he took the bag from me. I shook my head with a smile as he opened the bag. I watched as his signature, bright smile spread across his face as he pulled out the onsie I had found at the mall. He passed it over to Opie who laughed.

"You hit that on the head, Ana." Opie said still smiling as he passed the little onsie back to Jax. In there hands the little piece of clothing seemed tiny. I had gotten it especially for Jax when I saw that it read, "My Dad Can Kick Your Dad's Ass" with little brass knuckles.

"Jax, you're part of my family now. We're probably still going to fight now and then since you're an asshole and I'm a bitch, but that doesn't change the fact that I love you." I gave him an uncharacteristic hug and smiled. He hugged me back and kissed me on the cheek. I stood back up and headed inside.

"He loves you, Ana. Don't let the wife shit mess your head up. She hasn't been in the picture for a long time. You make him happy." Jax called after me. I paused and nodded with a smile. As much as I wished he didn't have a wife and kid in a different country, at least I knew.

**CHIBS' POV**

"Hey, I thought we were going to be at your house tonight?" I turned from the bar and my whiskey and saw Anna walking up to me. She kissed me a couple of times and took a seat next to me. She was there. I smiled.

"Ay, love. Club shit kept me here a little later. We got to take care of somethin in tha morning. Ya mind stayin' here so we got more time?" I said as I pulled her from the seat into my lap. She laughed and slapped me playfully.

"No, it's fine. You mind turning in early?" She whispered to me softly. I felt a heat run from my chest to my face. I kissed her cheek and stood up quickly, throwing her over my shoulder. She pounded on my back softly with her fists. "Damnit. You put me down." She growled, but it turned into a laugh at the end.

Once we got into my room, I tossed her down on the bed and watched as her face turned red. As frustrating as our morning had been, her embarrassed expression was too adorable to let that bother me. I kicked my boots off and joined her on the bed.

She kissed my neck softly, running her hand across my chest as we lay side by side. I ran my hand under her shirt and across her soft skin on her stomach as she moved to nibble on my ear. I couldn't help but smile like a teenager.

"We need to talk." She said with a whisper. My smile disappeared.

**ANA'S POV**

"Chibs don't look at me like that. I just want to finish our conversation from earlier before we get caught up in each other." I said as Chibs pouted at me. I couldn't help but smile.

"Look, I love you. I'm sorry I blew up this morning. It's not everyday I hear about a wife and child." I kissed him softly on the lips before I continued. "I know you would have told me eventually. It's not something you usually bring up as pillow talk, so I get the delay. I don't want any secrets and I appreciate you being honest with me." I ran my fingers through his hair and kissed him again. His eyes met mine and he sighed softly.

"What?" I asked, pulling back. He rested his forehead on mine and pulled me closer.

"Ana, thank you. I love you so much for trusting me. I may be married, but it's just legal shit at this point. I've tried ta file papers a couple times, but she won't sign 'em. " He started, pausing to swallow hard. "In this life, this club, there are a lot of old ladies that are in the dark. Tara knows some and Gemma knows a lot, but neither knows everything. I wish I could promise ya to tell ya everything, but I can't. That's just my life." He held me close as I sighed. I started getting frustrated when I felt tears well in my eyes. I hated crying.

"Ana, love, I am goin ta tell ya everything I can. I just hope you're okay with it not bein' everything." Chibs said with a hint of pleading in his voice. I took a deep breath and jumped.

"Okay. I get it. I know there's stuff you can't tell me. Hell, I probably wouldn't want to know what you couldn't tell me anyways. It could take away the silver lining. I love you. Part of that is trusting you." I said with confidence. Chibs kissed me deeply as he ran his hand beneath my shirt and up my back. I felt my body tingle with his touch. He pulled away just as I thought things were moving forward.

"Love, I have ta talk to ya about your friend, Jensen." Chibs said as he breathed in and out quickly from our passionate make out. I narrowed my eyes a little.

"Tonight when he mentioned why he's here, I lied about needing to meet Juice. I had to come here and we had to make a plan. That ATF shit. They can only be here for us." Chibs said cautiously. I took a deep breath and sat up slowly.

"It is. I learned that after you left." I said, looking down at my feet. "I know y'all aren't exactly law abiding citizens." Chibs sat up to sit beside me, wrapping his arm around me. I hung my head as I scooted closer. "I lied, Chibs."

**CHIBS' POV**

Her words cut into me. She knew the ATF was circling the club and she lied about it. I took a deep breath.

"I lied and told Jensen we were up at the cabin with Jax and Opie this weekend. I lied and said we were celebrating Tara's pregnancy and she wasn't there cause we were planning a baby shower." Ana sighed and I felt her sob a little. "He's a guy. He doesn't know that only women plan baby showers." I looked down at her and saw tears flowing freely down her face. She had lied for me. She had lied for the club.

"Ana, baby, don't cry. I'm sorry." I said kissing her over and over as her tears continued to fall. "You shouldn't have had to lie. I'm sorry." I pulled her closer to me as she shuddered a little. Her tears stopped flowing as quickly. I stood up slowly and took her hands in mine. She looked up at me as I kneeled in front of her.

**ANA'S POV**

Chibs knelt in front of me and rested his head on my knee for a couple minutes. I knew I couldn't have told Jensen the truth, but I didn't realize lying would hurt this much. He was a good friend. Chibs was the love of my life though. I couldn't let my friendship or the ATF hurt him. I couldn't let them hurt Jax or the club. They were family. Chibs raised his head after I kissed his hair softly.

"Ana, I can't offer ya the world. I do okay, but I'm never going to be able to offer you the white picket fence and the husband that goes to work in a suit and tie and return for dinner that you slaved over all day." Chibs said as he looked into my eyes. My eyes flew open when he said husband. I had no idea where he was going with this. "I love you, Ana. I can give ya that. I can give ya my heart and my promise to love ya forever. Ana Knowles, will you do me tha honor of marrying me?"

**CHIBS' POV**

Ana looked at me with shock for what felt like forever. I took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry. I know it's not exactly a legal marriage and I wish I could fix." I apologized until Ana took my head in her hands and kissed me deeply. I felt all of my worries and stress from the ATF and the Mayans melt away.

"Yes. Yes, Fillip." Ana said happily before starting kissing me again. I smiled until I realized I didn't have a ring to give her. I stood up and took her hand as I led her towards the door. "Chibs, wait a second." She laughed as she pulled against me.

"We need to go to the store and get ya a ring." I explained. Ana laughed and dug her heels in.

"No, we don't need to do that right now. Right now, I need my fiancé to take me to bed." She said, pulling me back to the bed. I gave in as she ran her hand beneath my jeans and stroked me.

I grinned and took my old lady to bed.


	12. Chapter 12

**ANA'S POV**

After a night of having sex and cuddling, I was so worn out I barely woke up when Chibs got out of bed. I remembered him kissing me and the door closing, but that's it. So, when I woke up a few hours later, I was a little disappointed having missed him. I took a quick shower and headed out to the clubhouse area. I saw Tara and Abel sitting on the couch and joined them.

"Ana!" Abel shouted, wrapping his little arms around my neck. I laughed and hugged him lightly.

"Hey little man. What are you up to?" I asked looking at his toy trucks with a smile. I noticed Tara grinning over at me.

"Playing chase. The police are trying to get me." Abel said innocently. I wondered silently where he picked that up from, but decided it was only child's play. I sat back and crossed my legs as I looked over him.

"You know when they're supposed to be back?" Tara asked smiling as Abel made siren noises. I shrugged and looked over at the clock.

"Should be soon. Chibs said they should be back for lunch." I said looking back over at Tara. She had a strange expression on her face. "What's up?" I said with a slight frown. I'd known my sister my whole life; I knew something was on her mind. She looked down at Abel for a second and bit her lip before answering.

"I didn't even know they were going out this morning. I just woke up when he was leaving and said he'd be back after while." Tara said with a look of disappointment. I absentmindedly played with Abel for a couple minutes before getting back with Tara. Like Chibs said, old ladies weren't told everything, and some less than others. I knew Jax was trying to protect her, so I decided to be on his side for once.

"Well, Chibs and I were up really late, so he probably just had more time to tell me. I'm sure Jax was just running behind this morning so he couldn't talk much." I put on my best fake smile and diverted my eyes down to Abel. Tara didn't say anything in response; she just kind of made a noise like she was considering it.

"Daddy!" Abel yelled as the clubhouse was filled with the sound of bikes rolling in. Tara and I laughed and followed him out to the patio to watch them roll in. I noticed a strange look on Jax and Clay's faces. Something had definitely gone down while they were gone.

I made a quick survey of the guys and was happy to see that none of them were hurt. I did see that Chibs was scowling a little as he got off his bike, but it slowly turned to a smile as he walked towards me.

**CHIB'S POV**

Taking Ana into my arms and feeling her soft lips against mine leveled my anger a little bit. I could tell she had noticed my expression though. The run hadn't been quite as successful in some of our opinions.

"Hey, baby. Are we still on for lunch?" She asked with a smile. I honestly wasn't in the mood for lunch, but her smile and eyes won me over. I nodded and kissed her on the cheek.

"Aye, let me just go take a shower and then we'll go." I said, kissing her softly before heading into the clubhouse hand-in-hand. Once I closed the dorm room behind us, I saw Ana's face get a little harder.

"What can you tell me about whatever pissed you, Jax and Clay off? The other Sons don't exactly look joyful either." She commented as she grabbed me a towel from the closet. I ran my hand over my face to gain some type of calm as I took the towel.

"Not much really. We went to go take care of something, like I told ya. Jax and Clay didn't agree on methods and then shit went down hill. Didn't have time for a vote exactly, so our say didn't matter much." I said as I peeled off my shirt and headed into the bathroom. Ana leaned against the doorframe and looked at me.

"Did you agree with Clay or Jax?" She asked. I paused and looked into her eyes. She looked like she was calculating something in her pretty head.

"Not that it mattered much, but Jax." I said simply. She just nodded and turned back towards the bedroom. I furrowed my brow, trying to figure out what she was thinking before getting in the shower. Even though I couldn't tell her much, I knew she was smart enough to fill in some pieces.

I smiled silently as I washed my hair. It was nice to have someone I could come home to.

**ANA'S POV**

Chibs came out of the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist. He looked more relaxed than he had when he first got in. I waited patiently as he got dressed and ran a comb through his hair. Once he looked to be done, I stood up.

"You ready?" I asked with a genuine smile. He laughed and nodded, following me out of the room and out towards the parking lot. I noticed Jax sitting at the bar, but Tara and Abel were nowhere to be seen.

"Where'd Tara go?" I asked, making a pit stop at Jax's chair. He took a long drag of his cigarette and looked over at me.

"Went in to make some rounds at St. Thomas. Abel's with my Mom." He said before taking another drag. I nodded and gave him a concerned look.

"She was worried, Jax. Take her some lilies when you go home." He looked at me and smiled weakly before thanking me with a one armed hug.

Chibs and I left Jax to calm down at the bar. I climbed on his bike behind him and waited as he strapped on his helmet. It was hard to keep from bouncing with excitement, which was uncharacteristically girly of me. I felt Chibs laugh a little as we pulled out of the lot.

I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket as we pulled up to the restaurant. Once we got in and seated, I took it out of my pocket and opened the text message. I reflexively frowned.

"What's wrong, love?" Chibs said looking over at me. I closed the message and put the phone back in my pocket.

"Jensen said he had to get back to New York. I was planning on hanging out with him later." I pursed my lips and shifted a little. I had a feeling Jensen was upset about the company I kept and cut his visit short.

Chibs didn't say anything and we ate our lunch in mostly silence. Once our check came, he looked over at me.

"If you want we can always wait to go pick out a ring." He said with a weak smile. I nudged his leg with my foot and shook my head.

"No way, Mister Telford. You aren't getting out of it that easy." I said, pushing Jensen out of my mind. I smiled over at Chibs, which cheered him up.

"Damn." He said with a wink. I laughed and motioned towards the door after the waitress brought his change back. We got back on the bike and headed down to a jewelry shop just outside of Lodi that he'd told me about.

**CHIBS' POV**

We walked into the shop and I saw Ana's eyes widen. I laughed and kissed her hand. She led me over to a ring display and started browsing. She paused at a couple here and there before she turned and looked at me.

"You're supposed to pick it out." She said looking at me expectantly. I shifted and tugged at my kutte as a nervous feeling hit me in the stomach. I wanted her to love whatever we got.

"Can I help you?" An older gentleman asked walking up to us. I tried to smile, but it probably didn't come out that way. I twisted my own ring on my index finger when it hit me.

"Aye, would ya mind sizing her ring finger?" I said, making sure not to look at Ana. She snapped her head over at me as she gave the man her hand. He asked about the comfort and changed the little silver sizing tool a couple of times before Ana agreed to one. I kissed her hand once more.

"Darlin, I need ya to go outside." I said pleading with the glare she gave me. She sighed and gave in.

"Fine, but if somebody kidnaps me, it's on you." She said as she turned to leave.

"Aye, I think they'd regret that after ya kick 'em around a little." She smiled and waved me off as she went through the door.

**ANA'S POV**

Chibs came out of the store empty handed twenty minutes later. I raised my eyebrows and him with surprise.

"You didn't find anything?" I asked as I got on the bike behind him. He turned and smiled back at me before cranking the engine. I smacked him lightly on the back. "Well?"

He shook his head and revved the engine to drown me out. I rolled my eyes and leaned back as we headed back to TM. I hopped off the bike and turned to him. He smiled and shook his head.

"Later, Love. You're anticipation is too cute to stop just yet." He said with a laugh. I slugged him in the arm semi-hard and narrowed my eyes at him. He laughed again and pulled me into a hug. "That's too cute to."

"What kind of biker says cute, Chibs?" I asked him with a smirk. He laughed and kissed me before he let me go.

"I've got a couple things to do around here. I got ta make an honest dollar every now and then." He said with a wink. I laughed and turned to join Tara and Abel who were playing on the swings.

"What's got you so excited?" Tara questioned. I shook my head and pushed Abel lightly on the swing.

"Chibs, hey can you move that damn van? It's been blocking my spot all week." Gemma called from the office. Chibs turned back and climbed in the mini van that was there for repair.

**CHIBS' POV**

I climbed in the van and turned the key before I heard a familiar, sickening noise.

"Shite!" I looked over to Ana and Tara as I jumped out of the driver's seat and made a run for it. I heard the explosion and saw Ana's face in my mind before it all went black.

**ANA'S POV**

The explosion kicked me into fight or flight. I jumped over the railing as Jax and the other Sons that had been hanging around ran to Chibs. I felt my stomach in my throat.

"Tara!" Jax called as he leaned over Chibs. I slid over next to him and saw the blood pooling beneath his head. I couldn't breathe.

Tara was beside me in a flash. She took his pulse and checked for his breathing as I cradled his face in my hands.

"He's alive, but barely. I can't even feel his pulse." Tara said to Jax. A couple minutes later I heard an ambulance pull into the lot. I was still kneeling over him as they reached down to put him on a backboard.

It was too close to watching Briana getting pulled out of the alley. I felt Jax's arms around me, pulling me back from Chibs. A part of me felt like I was back in the desert. I spun and pushed away from Jax as I pulled my M-9 out of the back of my jeans.

"Stop. You're going to kill him." I heard myself yell. It was like I had left my body and was watching everything go down, helpless to stop myself. Jax was shocked and froze for a second as the paramedics kept loading him into the ambulance. I felt my chest rise and fall in sobs.

"Ana, stop! They're trying to save him" Piney said, grabbing my outstretched arm. I turned and looked at him slowly. Something about seeing him brought me back.

I gazed into his eyes for a minute as Tara climbed in the back of the ambulance with Chibs. I heard them start to pull out and I ran to my Harley. I didn't fuck around with the helmet and tore out of Teller Morrow with Jax and several other Sons right behind me.

I couldn't lose somebody else again.

**Hey readers! I want to start off by thanking everyone for the follows and favorites and such. Next, I want to address the timeline. I understand that the timeline of events in Long Road Home doesn't line up with SOA. This is intentional for creative freedom. I apologize if this bothers anyone, but know that it is on purpose, I am drawing inspiration ****from the characters and using some familiar events to tie in with the plot. I hope you all enjoy :)**


	13. Chapter 13

I parked my bike in Tara's doctor's only parking spot and ran into the hospital. I followed the signs to the ER. I sprinted, not slowing for the objecting bystanders or the Sons behind me. I crashed through the ER waiting room door and looked around wildly for the door that led back to where Chibs was. A receptionist walked over to me hesitantly.

"Sweetie, are you okay? Do you need help?" She asked, looking from my blood soaked hands to the tear in my jeans from sliding on the asphalt. I turned my gaze on her.

"I need to get back there. My fiancé was severely hurt." I said, looking around for the door again. I caught it open, revealing doctors and nurses milling around. Before the receptionist could object, I brushed past her and made a beeline for the door. It closed and locked before I could reach it. Out of blind rage and frustration, I kicked the door as hard as I could. Two hands grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me backwards.

"Ana, calm down. I'll call Tara and have her bring you back there. There's nothing you can do for him right now." Jax said, removing one of his hands to pull out his phone. I nodded, feeling a numbness wash over me along with the realization that an injury like that usually ended with a one-way trip to the hospital.

I took a seat by an anxious looking Opie and lit a cigarette. I offered Opie the pack, but he just shook his head. The crying children around the waiting room spun my nerves up tighter as I sat and waited for Tara. Opie looked over at me a few minutes into our silent company.

"He'll be okay. We've been through worse shit and he's always come out on the other side." He said with a weak smile. I didn't respond, silently dragging on my cigarette. I wasn't sure if he was trying to convince himself or me more.

As I lit my second cigarette, the receptionist walked over to me, fiddling with her fingers and looking around the room nervously. She stopped about six feet from me and moved her mouth.

"Sorry, I couldn't hear you." I said quietly. My tone gave her some confidence as she cleared her throat and repeated herself.

"I'm sorry, I just said you can't smoke in here, ma'am." She said with a tiny smile. I looked down at my cigarette, which had bloody fingerprints where I'd been holding it and nodded.

"Yeah, I know. Sorry." I said weakly as I stubbed the ember out on my boot and put the cigarette back in the pack. She nodded a little and patted me on the shoulder.

"I understand. It's a nerve thing. I hope your fiancé is okay." I looked up at her and smiled as much as I could. Her innocent optimism was sweet. Just as she turned away though, my face fell. Tara was standing in the door to the back, covered in bloody scrubs. She wasn't smiling. I shook my head, frozen in place.

She caught sight of me and made her way over to me slowly. She stood in front of my in silence for a minute. I shook my head again.

"Do not tell me any bad news right now. Don't tell me he didn't make it. Don't tell me that, Tara." I whispered at the floor. Tara sighed and took my hand.

"Ana, he's in critical condition, but he's fighting. Dr. Mowbry said that he's got quite a bit of swelling on the brain and lost a lot of blood. They stopped the bleeding and stabilized him. Now we just have to let him rest and make sure the swelling goes down. He's not out of the woods yet, but he's working that way." Tara explained in her flat, doctor patient voice. I nodded and took a deep, shaky breath. As soon as I looked into her eyes, I sprang up and wrapped my arms around her neck.

"Tara, please don't let him die. I know he's not a baby so you aren't even his doctor, but please. I love him. He asked me to marry him." I sobbed into her hair, mentally kicking myself for crying. Tara patted my hair and I felt her relax a little. I pulled back and looked her in the eyes. She smiled a little and held out her hand.

In it was a small, black velvet box. I knew it had to be from our shopping earlier. I reached out and took it, cradling it to my chest. Tara smiled at me and laughed.

"Are you not going to show me?" She begged. I shook my head and bit my bottom lip.

"No, I haven't even seen it. He's going to give it to me when he wakes up and he wants to." I turned to Opie. "Will you hold on to it, so he knows that his surprise is still intact?" I asked with a weak smile. Opie stood up and pulled me into a big hug. I was lost in the gentle giant's arms until he let go.

"Yeah, I'll make sure nothing happens to it or you while he gets better." He said with a bright grin peeking out between his mustache and beard. I nodded and sat back down with a sigh.

"Tara, when can I see him?" I asked. She looked at me and bit the inside of her cheek.

"I don't know, Ana. I would say it'd be a couple hours at least. I'll do what I can and I'll update you if there are any changes, ok?" Tara said calmly before turning away and heading back into the emergency room she'd come form.

The next few hours drug by as the members of the Sons of Anarchy came and went. Jax or Opie stayed by my side the whole time; updating their brothers anytime they came in so I didn't have to. Juice brought me a coffee at one point and Happy brought me a Modern Firearm magazine.

I fell asleep and woke up with my head on Jax's shoulder. Tara was standing in front of us with a smile. I sat up straight and looked at her expectantly. She had changed into normal clothes at some point, which seemed a lot less morbid.

"He's awake. He's really groggy and being an ass to be honest, but he's awake. He's asking for you, Ana." She said, offering me her hand. I took it with a smile and let her lead me, with Jax following us, back to his room.

**CHIB'S POV**

"Aye, I know what happened and where I am. I'm tellin ya I want to see my woman, Damnit." I growled at the little redheaded nurse asking me stupid questions. She furrowed her brow and slammed the chart back into the pocket on the end of the bed before storming out of the room.

My head was spinning and throbbing from what I would expect was it hitting the pavement. There were tubes and wires running all over me, pissing me off further. I didn't need to be lying in the damn room; I needed to find the fucker that rigged that van. I was considering throwing my glass of water for good measure when I saw her face.

Ana was walking into the room with Jax stopping at the door behind her. I could see mascara trails running down her face and her lips and eyes were a little puffy. She was still my beautiful Ana. More importantly, she was okay.

"Ay, darlin. Fancy seeing you here." I said, trying to make her smile. It kind of worked she scowled a little before letting it melt into the smile I loved so much. She bit her lip as she walked over and took my hand. "Ay, sweetheart, it's alright. I got a hard head."

Ana nodded and kissed my lips softly. I knew she thought I was going to break.

"Fillip, I was so worried." She whispered by my ear. I nodded and smoothed her hair. It smelled sweet like honey and oats.

"I know, love. Me to." I said, cradling her as best I could in my wired and stuck arms. "I'll try not ta do that again. Wasn't as fun as it looked." I said, kissing her cheek. I felt it rise into a smile and I laughed. My head sent shocks of pain down my neck with every chuckle, but it was worth it.

"Darlin, would ya mind lettin' me talk to Jax for a minute?" I whispered to her. She pulled up and looked me in the eye for a minute, but finally smiled and nodded her head.

"I love you, Chibs." Ana said with a kiss to my cheek. I nodded and grinned a little.

"As I love you, Ana." I replied as she walked by Jax and out to the hall with Tara. Jax walked in and took my hand in a brotherly shake.

"Ay, Jacky Boy. Nice to see ya again." I said with a short laugh. Jax shook his head and smirked.

"Yeah, don't pull that shit again." He said with a sigh as he sat back in a chair. "What'd you need to talk to me about?" I looked at him seriously and sat up as much as I could.

"Jax, we gotta find the ass hole that rigged that fucking van. I'm tellin ya, by the sound of it, ya need to be looking at tha Irish." I said darkly. "We gotta get even for this shit. Too damn close ta family." Jax nodded and leaned forward as we talked and planned our next move.

**ANA'S POV**

"Tara, who would have done that? What if one of the kids had been playing near by?" I asked, feeling my numbness give way to vengeance. Tara shook her head and took a sip of coffee.

"I don't know Ana. I don't know how I can keep being there. I should have known something like this was going to happen one day. I wish Jax would just let it all go and we could be a normal family somewhere." She said with a thoughtful look into her coffee mug. I shook my head and took her hand.

"Tara, I want you to be safe and happy, but I don't think either of them would ever be able to leave. It's who they are." I said with a smile. Inside, I realized how at this moment, Tara and I had switched roles. I had always hated the club and wanted her away from it. Now, I considered them family and even justified their ways and I just wanted payback and Chibs to be okay.


	14. Chapter 14

I looked up as I heard Jax walk out of the room. He gave Tara a quick kiss and explained that he had to get to the clubhouse for church. Tara nodded and gave me a hug, saying that she needed to go check on a patient. As soon as she was around the corner, I jogged to catch up with Jax. He stopped and turned to me with his hands in his kutte.

"What are we going to do?" I said with my arms folded across my chest. Jax raised his brow.

"We? We aren't going to do anything. You're going to stay here with Chibs and Tara and I'm going to church so that I can get shit rolling on finding out who did this." Jax said pointedly. I scowled at him and shook my head.

"Jax, I'm not playing into this macho male bullshit. I'm not some croweater that needs help tying her shoes. I've been in wars worse than they'll ever see on tv. Don't you dare stand there and tell me I just need to be moral support, Jackson." I hissed at him as a couple of nurses walked by, stealing glances at our mid-hallway debate. Jax shook his head and pulled me over by the wall.

"I'm not being a dick, Ana. No matter how much you can or want to help with this, you can't. Not how you want to. What you can do is stay here with Tara and Chibs so that I don't have to put one of my guys here. Ana, the only reason I get to have all hands on deck is because we know you'll watch their backs. I really need to go. Please, just stay here." He said quietly. He dropped his hand from my arm and walked out of the hospital. I set my jaw and headed back to Chibs' room.

I wasn't exactly happy about being kept out of the loop, but I realized Jax had a point. Despite my eagerness, the Sons probably had a lot more intel than I could access or decipher. So, with me here, all of them could track the bastards down and end this shit.

I took a seat in a chair by Chibs' bed and took my gun out of its holster. I racked a round and flipped the safety back on before returning it to the holster. I caught him staring at me out of the corner of my eye.

"What's going on in that pretty head a yours?" He said groggily. I shrugged and leaned forward, taking his hand in mine. "Don't worry bout me lass, ya can't get rid a me that easy. Speakin a which, did you find a box in my kutte?" He asked, eyes suddenly widening. I shh'd him and smiled.

"Yeah, Opie has it for safe keeping. I didn't even open it. I figured you'd want to be the one to show it to me." I told him. He seemed to calm down, knowing that it was in safe hands. He nodded a little and looked over at me.

"Love, I may fall ta sleep. Ya don't have ta stay here. Ya can come back in tha morning." He said, slurring as he fought sleep. I didn't want to keep him up, so I just said okay and let him fall asleep before I leaned back in the chair.

**CHIBS' POV**

As I half slept through the night, I noticed that Ana was still there. A couple times I thought I was seeing things, but sure enough, she was sitting in the chair or standing in the doorway. She seemed alert, but I could tell she was tired.

"Here, I had this in my office. I thought you might want it." I heard Tara say as I woke up to the sun coming in through the window. I turned my head and watched as Ana took her shirt off and pulled on the sweatshirt Tara must have given her.

"Aye, I'm happy ta wake up to a show, darlin." I teased as he head popped out of the shirt. She blushed a little as she smiled over at me.

"Mr. Telford, you really shouldn't be getting all hot and bothered when you're laid up in a hospital bed." She said, sitting down on the bed and moving the hair that was stuck to my face back where it belonged. The feel of her skin was like heaven to my banged up head.

"Ay, you're the one strippin, Sergeant." I gathered all my strength and sat up straight. Her eyes widened with concern but she didn't object as I wrapped my arm around her and kissed her. Kissing Ana made me forget I was banged up. The taste of her lips just made me want more. I slid my hand down her back and under the sweatshirt as her breath hitched. She braced herself on my thigh, causing me to wish those hands were on my hardened…

"Excuse me." A voice said from behind Ana as she pulled back quickly. I scowled at the same red headed nurse that had asked the stupid questions last night.

"Aye, most people knock." I growled. Ana scowled at me and smacked me lightly on the leg.

"I'm sorry Mr. Telford but I need to check your vitals and you really aren't in any condition for, um, that." She said with a blush. Her attack on my current abilities pushed me over the edge.

"I don't give a flying fuck what ya think I'm in condition for. If I want ta bone meh old lady in tha hospital than I will. Jesus Christ, why am I wired up like a fucking computer if ya still have to barge in here and check that I'm not dead yet." I shouted. The nurse looked from me to Ana and started to say something. Instead, she just checked the monitors and stormed out of the room.

"Chibs, she is only trying to do her job. I'm sure she doesn't want some cranky Scott ruining her morning." Ana said testily. I shrugged and leaned back on the pillows.

"Aye, maybe she shouldn't ruin my morning then." I muttered. Ana caught what I said and rolled her eyes at me. She stood up and walked over towards the door.

"I'm getting coffee. Does your ill ass want anything?" Ana said with a sarcastic smile.

"A pack a smokes and some Jameson." I said wishfully. She just laughed before walking out into the hall. I grinned after her, thinking about different ways to actually give her the ring. It'd been a long time since I was this loopy over a woman, and I had to admit, I loved it. My brothers would probably say I'm whipped, but fuck 'em, what if I am?

"Why are you grinning like that?" Ana said as she walked back in with two coffees in hand. She handed me one and I took a sniff.

"Love, I don't smell the Jameson in here." I teased her. She smiled and shook her head, causing some of her blonde hair to fall in her face. I laughed and brushed it behind her ear as she sat her coffee on the bed table.

"I love you, Fillip Chibs Telford." Ana said as she kissed me softly on the lips. I sucked her bottom lip into my mouth a little, just to hear her moan. It was short lived because a split second later, she spun around and drew her M-9 simultaneously. The man standing at the door held up his hands in mock surrender as he smiled and nodded to me.

"Tha fuck are you doing here Jimmy?" I growled as I heard Ana flip the safety off. Jimmy O'Phelan took a step forward and looked around to me.

"Aye, Fillip, do ya mind callin ya're woman off meh?" He said with a nod to Ana. I furrowed my brow and sighed.

"Ana, ya can't shoot someone in the middle of a hospital, love." I said half-heartedly.

**ANA'S POV**

"Like hell I can't." I said to Chibs, not taking my eyes off O'Phelan. He pointed down to his waistband before slowly reaching down. He pulled out a 1911 and sat it on the chair behind him.

"There, lass. You're tha only one with tha weapon now. Could ya please stop pointin it at me?" He said with a sickening, sweet smile. I glanced over to Chibs quickly he nodded and I lowered my pistol to my side. I didn't go as far as holstering or even flipping the safety on, however. He lowered his hands and extended his hand towards me.

"Jimmy O'Phalen, nice ta make your acquaintance." He said as I stared him down. He laughed once and dropped his hand.

"Anastasia Knowles." I said flatly. He smiled again before turning to Chibs.

"I heard ya got a little roughed up by a car bomb. I was in town, so I just thought I'd come by and make sure ya're doing alright." Jimmy said with a thick Irish accent. I remained motionless.

"Aye, a phone call woulda been just fine." Chibs said, obviously displeased to have him here. Jimmy looked from Chibs to me and sighed.

"Lass, would ya mind steppin out in tha hall a minute? Fillip and I need to talk some business." He said as innocently as he could. I narrowed my eyes and glanced over at Chibs, hoping he'd tell Jimmy to fuck off.

"Aye, it's alright Ana. It won't take long." He said quietly. I could hear a darkness in his voice that had never been there before. I clenched my teeth together and made my way over to Jimmy.

"Take off your jacket and raise your shirt." I barked at him. His eyes widened and his mouth curved into a pissed off smirk.

"Excuse me?" He spat. I raised my gun a little. He sighed and did as I asked. I nodded as he put his shirt back down. "Happy?"

"Lift your trouser legs above your socks." I said coldly. His eyes widened again as he muttered some Gaelic that caused Chibs to warn him off it. I looked over both his socks before nodding. I holstered my pistol, safety still off, and grabbed his jacket and 1911. "I don't trust you." I spat as I walked towards the door.

"Aye," he laughed, "no offense, right?" I cut my eyes back and him and shook my head.

"No, offense intentional." I said before pulling the door almost all the way to behind me. As soon as I was out of his view, I pulled out my phone and texted Jax.

**_Irish guy, Jimmy O'Phalen here._**

I leaned against the nurses station and kept an eye on Chibs through the window. O'Phalen was keeping his distance, but I could tell by their body language that this wasn't a meeting about Christmas cards and office parties. My phone vibrated, alerting me of Jax's response:

**_Do not let him out of your sight around Chibs or Tara. On my way. No cafeteria food for either of you._**

I raised my eyebrows, wondering what the Irish prick had to do with lunch, but decided not to question it. The red headed nurse that Chibs' bitched at walked up beside me and folded her arms.

"Is he always like that?" She said, glancing up at me. I shook my head and laughed.

"No, he's not. He doesn't seem to be a big fan of hospitals or being a patient." I said with a smile.

"Yeah? I hadn't noticed. He should be out tomorrow morning. He's made a miraculous recovery and your sister told his doctor that she'd watch out for him so he could get out early." She said with a smile before heading over to a computer.

"Thanks, that means a lot." I said with a sincere smile and tone. This time, she laughed and shook her head back at me.

"Oh, trust me. I would have been all for him leaving had anyone asked me." She said, smiling before she turned her full attention to the computer screen. I stared into Chibs' room as it looked like Jimmy was getting ready to leave.

"Hey, sorry to bother you, but could you page Tara down here? My phone just died and it's really important." I said, hoping she'd make it down here before Jimmy had a chance to come out in the hall. The young nurse smiled and paged her right away.


	15. Chapter 15

Tara slid to a stop next to me, looking from me to Chibs' room. Her brow furrowed as she saw O'Phalen standing in there with him. I took her arm and pulled her around to look at me. Her face was a little paler than normal.

"Jax is on his way. You need to go get Abel and go to your office." I said, glancing at her for a minute. She shook her head with a sigh.

"Gemma has him today. I'm not leaving this wing until that prick is gone." Tara said stubbornly. Jax, Opie, and Tig busted through the door to the wing and made their way over to us quickly.

"You left him in there?" Tig asked with a scowl. I shoved O'Phalen's jacket and gun at him and tilted my head. Normally, Tig and I had fun with back and forth, but I wasn't in the mood for his doubts.

"He's clean and I've been right here the whole time." I said, turning from Tig to Jax. He was looking at O'Phalen with a dangerous expression. The intruder noticed his new on lookers and nodded to Chibs before exiting out into the hall.

"Nice to see ya, Jackson. Just checkin in on an old friend." He said smiling at the Sons. Tara folded her arms across her chest, making her little baby bump more noticeable. "Aye, I see ya've got another one on the way?" He said with a shine in his eye. I took a step over to block Tara as Jax stepped up into O'Phalen's face.

"Don't fucking talk about my family. I'm having a hard time thinking a car bomb and you being in town is a coincidence." Jax said with an angry grin. O'Phalen wasn't fazed.

"Jackson, I know what you're getting at and it wasn't tha Irish. I can promise ya that. If I wanted any of you're brotha's dead, I would do it personally so I could watch." He said, no longer smiling. He reached out to get his stuff from Tig.

"Stay safe." He said sarcastically as he put his jacket back on and put his 1911 back in his waistband. He walked causally down the hall and out of sight. Jax relaxed a little once he was gone, pulling Tara into his side.

I left the group out in the hall and went back to Chibs. He was scowling until he saw me walk back in, then his scowl lightened a little.

**CHIB'S POV**

"Ay, love. Sorry about that. Old friend from Ireland." I said, not making eye contact with her. She shook her head and sat back in her original seat.

"Yeah, with friends like that, I'm surprised you have any enemies." She said sarcastically. I sighed and looked over at her. She wasn't buying it, but I didn't want her to deal with any more stress today.

"Nurse said they're sendin me home today. Guess I did a good job getting' better." I said with a wink and grin. Ana cut her eyes over at me without a word. Finally she smiled and rolled her eyes.

"It's because you're so fucking hard headed." She said with a little laugh. I relaxed and smiled, glad to see my Ana happier.

"So, Anastasia, huh?" I said carefully. She shrugged and joined me on the bed.

"Uh, don't even start. There's a reason I go by Ana." She said, kissing me on the cheek. I ran my hand over her leg as I heard footsteps entering the room. Ana stayed seated by my side on the bed as Jax leaned against the window looking out into the hall.

"What'd O'Phalen want?" Tig asked, poking on of the i.v. bags. I looked back to Ana and smiled as best I could.

"Love, would ya mind getting me another coffee?" I asked, hoping she wouldn't pick up the cup that was still full. She stood up and smirked.

"I'm not getting you another coffee when you didn't drink that one, but I will leave so you boys can talk club stuff." She walked towards the door shaking her head.

"Coffee." She said with a laugh before closing the door behind her. I smiled and sat up in bed.

"She's a good old lady." Opie said with a grin as he tossed me the ring box he'd been keeping safe. I shrugged, but my smile gave my fondness away. I sat the box on the table and sighed.

"O'Phalen swears it wasn't them. Said the kings are fairly pleased right now and wouldn't do anything to fuck that over." I told Jax, Tig, and Opie. Jax ran a hand over his face and shook his head. I noticed how he seemed much older than he did just a year or so ago.

"Yeah, I talked to the kings before Ana let me know Jimmy was here. We gotta figure this shit out. Alvarez swears it wasn't them either. He and Clay are working on a some possibility of a truce, so I really don't think he'd want to fuck that up." Jax said with frustration. I shook my head, feeling a sense of unease wash over me.

"Jax, we gotta figure this shit out. How are we supposed to keep innocents safe when we don't know what's threatening them?" I said, flashes of Ana's worried expression coming to mind.

"Car bombs aren't brown's style. If it's not Irish we need to look into other whites that have beef with us." Tig said in a serious tone. Opie nodded as Jax did the same.

"All right, brother, you're out of here this afternoon anyways, but I want you home with your girl until Tara clears you. Opie, you and Tig are coming with me. We've got to pay our favorite Nazi a visit." Jax fell into his VP role and shook my shoulder a little before heading out.

"Aye, Jacky boy, watch your asses out there. Hospital beds make fuckin' a little complicated." I said with a laugh. Tig laughed and pushed a hand into the mattress.

"Nah, you've got a bed and floor. If you can't find a way to bang that fine piece of ass, I'd be more than happy to keep her exercised for you." Tig said with a wink.

"Tig, I'll cut your dick off if you talk about my old lady and fucking in the same sentence again." I growled. He wiggled his eyebrows and followed Jax and Opie out of the room.

"Ana! Get your arse in here, woman." I called out loudly through the open door.

**ANA'S POV**

"Excuse me? I don't know who in the hell you think you're talking to." I said, storming into the room and folding my arms across my chest. Chibs had a big grin on his face and I could tell he was laughing on the inside.

"Aye, I'm talkin' to my feisty old lady who would kick my ass if I wasn't laid up in the hospital." He said with a chuckle as he motioned me over. I laughed and sat on the bed again, kissing him on the lips. He pulled me further into the kiss, causing me to moan softly against him. He slipped his tongue in and ran his hand down from my shoulder to caress my breast.

I pulled back and caught my breath, shaking my head. Chibs pouted with a smile still in his eyes. He leaned forward and grabbed something off the table beside him. I smiled as he reached his hand out towards me. He turned his closed fist upwards and slowly unfurled his fingers. In his palm was a rose gold ring. I picked it up slowly and turned it over slowly.

I smiled, noticing the heart shaped diamond in between two beautifully sculpted hands. There was a crown on top of the heart, with small diamonds of its own. I looked up at Chibs and smiled brightly with tears in my eyes.

"Do you like it?" He said quietly, rubbing my knee. I laughed out of shock from the ridiculous question.

"Of course, I love it Chibs." I said, leaning in and kissing him softly on the mouth. He took the ring and slid it on my finger.

"It's a claddagh. Wearing it this way," he ran his thumb over the ring that was on my left ring finger with the heart facing outward, "it means that you're engaged. When we're married, we'll flip it around and face it towards you. It's an Irish traditional ring, but us Scots use 'em to. Anyways, the hands are for friendship, the heart for love, and the crown for loyalty." Chibs explained as he gazed into my eyes. I felt a tear run down my cheek before he kissed it away.

"I love you, Fillip Telford." I said, kissing him deeply. He smiled and ran his hand over my hair.

"I love you, Anastasia Knowles." He said with a silly smile. I narrowed my eyes and slugged him on the arm. He rubbed the spot and laughed. "I'm sorry love, I couldn't resist."

I laughed and turned as the nurse walked into the room with some papers. She handed them off to Chibs and explained where to sign and what they were. I could tell he wasn't paying any attention, but signed quickly and shoved them back at her.

"Thanks darlin." He said with a smile. She blushed and nodded as she headed out of the room.

"Was that so hard? Being nice?" I asked, pursing my lips. Chibs just nodded and grabbed my side softly, causing me to jerk away and laugh from the tickling sensation.

"Soon as we get home, I'm taking you to bed and we're not coming out unless the fucking house catches on fire." Chibs growled into my ear, nipping it softly and running his tongue over it. I felt goose bumps run all over my body.

**Sorry it's been a while and this chapter is a bit short, I'm going through some writer's block on this one. I'm trying to get through it by working on some other projects but I promise to keep brainstorming on this one. If you have any input or ideas, PM them to me :) thank you **


	16. Chapter 16

"Damnit, Chibs! If you weren't so damn stubborn, people might actually make your life easier." I swore as he grouchily refused to call a prospect to help him move the new couch he'd had delivered. I threw my hands up from the side I was moving with him and scowled. He had winced a couple of times in the few feet we'd managed to move the huge thing, and now he was bracing himself against the chair arm, holding onto his side.

It had been two weeks since Chibs had gotten out of the hospital, and he was getting cabin fever. If it wasn't moving in new furniture, it was rearranging their bedroom. At one point, he'd even talked about knocking down the wall separating the living room and kitchen so the place felt bigger. I didn't think it was a bad idea, but his timing was horrible.

Speaking of horrible timing, I had been avoiding dropping a bomb on him for over a week. With everything that had happened since I got to town, looking for a job had been on the back burner but now it was getting to the point that if I didn't get a job soon, I'd have to scoop into my savings. Despite the shitty job market in Charming, I'd been able to find a high paying job that I was actually qualified for.

"Jus' leave it here for a bit. Wha's botherin' ya, doll?" Chibs asked, catching me in deep thought. He took a seat on the large, black leather couch and stretched his arm out for me to join him. As horrible as it was, I decided to take advantage of his exhaustion, hoping he wouldn't get too pissed.

"You know how we talked about me getting a job, right?" I started, testing the waters. Chibs nodded, so I continued, "Well, I got an offer to start teaching." I said vaguely.

"Teaching what?" Chibs asked, eyeing me suspiciously. I looked down at my fingernails and picked at my index finger's chipping black polish.

"The crummy police department some actual tactics." I said, not looking at him. I felt him tense and turn his head slowly to look at me.

"Tha's hilarious. For a minute I though' ya were actually serious." Chibs growled, no hint of humor in his voice at all. I sighed and turned to look him in the eye. Apparently, he wasn't exhausted enough to not get pissed.

"It's not like I'd be a cop, just a tactical instructor. It wouldn't even be full time, just contract stuff. I'd only work a few months out of the year and they pay is a hell of a lot better than I was making before, even with combat pay." I said, keeping my tone even as his face flooded with a darker and darker shade of red.

"Ana, no. I don't even know why ya thought ta even consider it. In case you forgot, our lovely Sheriff's department isn't a big fan a tha Sons. Tha answer's no." He scoffed as he climbed up from the couch and headed into the kitchen. I heard the familiar sound of the glass Jameson bottle being slammed on the counter followed by a clink of a tumbler before he returned and leaned up against the doorframe.

"Chibs, I love you and I get that you're pissed, but I wasn't asking you. You can either stay pissed off and drink yourself silly, or you can fucking listen to me for a minute. If I teach them tactics, you will know exactly what to expect. Even if they learn how to walk and talk like cops, it's still Charming. They're still not going to press you because somewhere down the line, they owe you for one thing or another." I yelled as he rolled his eyes. I stood up from the couch and went to the coat closet, yanking my riding jacket out.

"Where tha fuck are you going, Ana?" Chibs asked gruffly. I turned back and scowled at him.

"I've got shit to do." I grabbed the keys to my Harley and headed out of the house, making sure to slam the door behind me. I sat on the roaring bike as I considered my options. I could go back inside and fight it out with him now, or I could put it off and go see Tara.

**CHIBS' POV**

I let my temper and the agitation of healing so slowly get the best of me. As soon as Ana's bike was out of range to be heard, I chucked the empty glass at the wall and picked up the bottle of Jameson and headed to the couch. I knew she'd planned on getting a job and her resume was somewhat singular in experience, but fuck. It'd be easier on both of us if she'd just waitress at a damn restaurant.

We hadn't fought since the day she'd found out about Kerrianne and Fiona. She'd put up with my ill ass in the hospital and being home had just put me in a worse mood, for the most part. I hated walking around like some cripple and at times, her helping pissed me off even more.

"Juicy Boy, bring tha van and pick me up." I barked once Juice finally answered his damn phone. I pulled my kutte on slowly and combed my hair back out of my face. It would need to be cut soon or it'd be in my face all the time. For the time being, it usually only irritated me when I got pissed or when I was fucking Ana, and at that point I hardly even noticed my damn hair.

"Uh, where are we going?" Juice asked curiously right before I hung up on him. I really wasn't in the mood to explain myself. I finished off the half bottle of Jameson and waited around in the kitchen, making a mental note to restock on the way back. I heard a car pull up in the driveway about fifteen minutes later and made my way outside. The spirits had taken the edge off the pain, so I didn't look like such a pussy walking out to the van.

"Hey! You're looking better, brother! Where to?" Juice said, grinning like a damn idiot. I climbed in the van and slammed the door behind me.

"Friday isn't it? Don't tell me ya put tha parties on hold." I asked, kicking my boot up on the dashboard. I could feel Juice start to ask a question. "Mind ya business, Juicy."

Juice refrained from asking whatever he'd had in his head and just drove. I knew there'd be questions at the clubhouse, but hopefully we'd get there early enough that I'd be too drunk to care once the others funneled in.

Two hours later, I was sitting at the bar between Opie and Jax with a full glass of Jameson. Neither one of them had asked why he was there. Having old ladies of their own, I figured they probably knew better than most what drinking after a fight looked like. Unlike those two though, I wasn't planning on getting my dick wet in a dorm room to piss Ana off or what ever their reasons were for doing that. I wasn't blind, I still saw the croweaters and I still heard the guys teasing for locking it down for Ana, but I didn't care. She was the first woman I'd loved in decades, and I wasn't planning on fucking that up with some used up piece of ass.

"Hey, Chibs! We've missed you around here." Some bleached blonde croweater with tits spilling out cooed as she ran a hand over the back of my kutte. She squeezed herself in to stand between Opie's stool and mine, fixating her eyes on me with a slutty smile. I rolled my eyes and turned my attention back to Jax, hoping she was smarter than she looked. If I had to tell her to leave, it was going to piss me off.

**ANA's POV**

"Tara, thank you so much for going with me today! You should have gotten that teddy, you're barely showing and Jax would have loved it." I said with a laugh as I saw her horrified face. We'd gone to a little lingerie boutique up near Lodi so I could get Chibs a, 'I'm sorry we fought, but I'm still right' gift.

"Hey, it's no problem. You're a trooper for handling that little fighter back there even while shopping." Tara said with a laugh as she peeked at Abel from the rearview mirror. I'd played with and entertained the little hell raiser after our boutique visit to let Tara shop for groceries in some type of peace. We were just pulling into her and Jax's house when her phone buzzed in the cup holder.

"Hey, baby. No, that's fine, Ana helped me at the store. I'm just pulling in right now. He is? Yeah, I'll let her know. Be careful when you head home. You to." Tara said with a small smile as she ended the call and cut the car's engine. I cut my eyes over at her.

"Tell me what?" I asked, bracing myself for some type of bad news. The last time Jax and I had talked, he'd told me they'd found out who planted the bomb, but had to be careful about revenge.

"He just said that Chibs is at the clubhouse. Apparently Juice picked him up. He's fine, just hit the Jameson pretty hard." Tara said with a shrug. I knew had it been Jax drunk after a fight, Tara would have flipped her shit. I trusted Chibs, but I still didn't like him drinking too much since he was still healing, according to Tara's latest evaluation.

"I'll swing by and check on him before I go home." I said with a smile as I got Abel out of his car seat and handed him to Tara once she came back from taking in the last load of groceries. "You okay to put all that up?"

"Yes, Ana. I'm pregnant, not dying. He's asleep anyways." Tara said, eyeing Abel lovingly. I nodded and kissed Abel on the top of the head lightly and squeezed Tara's arm lightly. After strapping my helmet on, I headed out to the clubhouse.

The party was in full swing as I walked my bike back into line, a little apart from the Sons. I wasn't planning on staying long, so I went ahead and kept my jacket on and carried my helmet with me. I trusted all of the sons and the croweaters wouldn't dare touch any bike, but some of the new hang arounds made me weary.

"Hey, Tig! Is he inside?" I called over to Tig who was sitting at a picnic table with a croweater on his lap. He smiled when he saw me and pushed the half naked girl off of him.

"Yep, he's been perched on a bar stool all night. You hear to drag his ass home?" Tig said with a laugh as he opened the door for me. I looked at him as I walked through.

"No, just wanted to check on him and apologize for yelling at him." I said with a smile as we made our way over towards the crowded bar. I saw Tig's smile falter a little. I followed his sight line and watched as a blonde, bimbo looking croweater ran her hand down Chibs' back before trying to give him a kiss on the neck. Had I not been utterly pissed, I would have smiled that Chibs had pulled away and tried to shrug her off. He hadn't seen me, since I was at his back, so I knew I had been right to always trust him.

**CHIBS' POV**

I turned away from Jax to snap at the stupid arm clinger, just in time to see her get yanked away from the bar. She let out a yelp and stumbled as she fell down to her knees. The Jameson made it hard for me to take in what was going on, but Ana's voice seemed to sober me a little.

"Fucking skank. You've been around long enough to know he's got an old lady." Ana yelled as she pulled the blonde up to her feet by the hair. She had a look in her eyes that I'd only seen the night of the drive-by. I thought Tig, who was standing nearby, would have pulled Ana off the croweater, but he just stood there with his jaw dropped and a smile in his eyes.

"Don't matter to most of 'em. Ask Jax." The girl cried out as she tried to free herself from Ana. I watched as Ana's eyes darkened further. If she'd been mad before, mentioning Jax's past indiscretions sent her over the edge.

Her fist flew into the croweater's face, instantly sending a fountain of blood down the girl's barely there white shirt. She screamed and tried to claw at Ana as my fiancé's fist collided with her face again. This time, the croweater fell back down to her knees, dragging Ana down to the floor with her.

"Stupid bitch." The croweater shrieked as she kicked a heeled sandal out, connecting with Ana's stomach. Ana grunted a little, but had the kick hurt or not, she pinned the girl down and sat on her stomach, connecting her fist with her face several more times. Opie finally sighed and stepped down from the stool. He wrapped his arms around Ana's waist and pulled her off. Her fists were still flying as the blonde stood up shakily. He face was bleeding along with her nose, and it had already started turning purple.

"If I let you go, can you not go after her again? Pretty sure you won, Ana." Opie said with a laugh. I knew he and Ana had known one another back when they were growing up, so that was probably why he was the only one brave enough to pull her up. I went to her side dizzily, standing for the first time in a long while. She smiled at me and elbowed Opie a little. He laughed and let her go before dropping his arms and grabbing Ana a water from behind the bar.

"Hey babe, I just thought I'd say sorry for yelling earlier." Ana said with a laugh before giving me a kiss. I laughed as well and hugged her closer to my side.

"I'm sorry, love. You had every right to yell. I'm just glad you didn't fight me like that." I said, tickling her side a little. She giggled and pulled away with a yawn.

"I'm going home. Your ass is too drunk to ride, so just stay here and I'll see you in the morning. Anyone drives you home and I'll kick their asses. No one here is sober enough to even think about driving that van." Ana said in a tone that stopped me from objecting. I nodded and kissed her again.

"Thanks for the water, Ope. Make sure he gets to his dorm." I heard Ana say, giving Opie a hug as she took the bottle of water from him. Opie just nodded and turned back to his beer as she walked away.

"I got to say, brotha, even I wouldn't ha been brave enough to pull her off." I laughed as I sat down next to Opie again. He just nodded slowly and Jax turned his head away, failing at any sense of discretion. "Wha?"

"I got used to it when she was in high school." Opie said simply. Either I was missing something or the Jameson was really handing me my ass tonight.

"Why? You two are older than her aren't ya?" I asked, pushing the full glass of alcohol away. Jax clapped me on the back and looked over at Opie.

"It's probably a discussion you two should have a little less drunk." Jax said as he got up and headed out of the clubhouse for the night. Opie shrugged and finished off his last beer before speaking.

"Look, it's a long story from a long time ago. Lyla was expecting me over an hour ago. Mind talking about this tomorrow?" He said with a yawn. I hated being in the dark, but his yawn reminded me how tired I was. I headed back to the dorm as he headed out to his bike. Somehow, even through the alcohol, I knew that conversation wasn't over.

**I'm sorry it's taken me ****so long to update! Hopefully you enjoy this chapter. I apologize for any grammar or spelling mistakes, I wanted to get it out to you as soon as possible. I'll be at a convention all weekend, so it'll be a while for the next one as well, so hopefully this will hold everyone over :) **


	17. Chapter 17

**ANA'S POV**

Tara was sipping a green tea and staring at me from across the little café table. I narrowed my eyes as I set my coffee down with a sigh. She'd invited me out for breakfast since Gemma took Abel for the day, but I was starting to wonder if she didn't have deeper motives than a muffin and tea.

"Have you talked to Chibs this morning?" Tara asked as casually as she could. I leaned back in the metal chair and crossed my arms over my chest.

"No, I'm guessing he's still asleep. Why?" I asked with heightened suspicion. She pulled her bottom lip in a little and went back to looking at the front page of the paper.

Despite it being well before noon, the summer heat was rolling in for yet another hot day. I was suddenly thankful I'd chosen cut off shorts and a tank instead of jeans. When Tara had pulled into the parking lot, she'd laughed and asked if I actually rode there without a jacket. Apparently she didn't approve of the thin strings that made up the sides and back of my tank, despite the fact I had indeed worn a denim jacket on the ride over.

"How long are you going to keep up the act? You've had plenty of time to read that page by now." I told Tara, finishing off my coffee. She folded the paper in half and looked back up at me with a guilty expression.

"You know how Opie pulled you off Bridget last night?" Tara asked. I shrugged with a smirk.

"I didn't really take the time to get her name, but sure. What about it?" Tara swallowed hard and gave me a weak smile.

"Well, Jax said that Chibs and Opie were talking about it. Then Opie said that he got used to it when you were in high school. Jax said Chibs was too drunk to press Opie on it, but it's probably coming soon. Please tell me you told him about you and Opie." Tara pleaded quickly. I flipped my sunglasses up to the top of my head and rubbed my hands over my face. "Ana, seriously?"

"Tara. I mean. It didn't," I grumbled from behind the cover of my palms. She let out a sigh as I propped my elbows on the table and slid my hands back to support my head by my temples.

"Ana, are you kidding me? You start dating and hell get engaged to Chibs and never think he might want to know about you and Opie? If it was just some random guy then bringing it up would be ridiculous but they're brothers, Ana." Tara scolded, sounding like the big sister I always got lectures from when we were younger. She'd gotten in trouble here and there before she left, but she still made it a priority to lecture me for anything she saw fit.

"It was forever ago. I mean damn, we were kids. It shouldn't even matter anymore. Things are obviously different now." I said, shaking the worry from my mind. "Chibs won't care about that. I mean, he may wonder why I didn't tell him before, but that's just because it didn't matter enough to bring it up." I rationalized. Tara narrowed her eyes at me and nodded sarcastically.

"Yeah, sure. Let me know how that excuse works out." She said with a nasty laugh. I pulled my RayBans back over my eyes and tossed a tip on the table as Tara and I headed out to the parking lot.

"Tara?" I asked, stopping alongside her suv. She rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Yeah, fine, I'll go with you. You'd think at our age you wouldn't need me to hold your hand, but whatever." She spat, climbing into the drivers seat. I flashed her a quick grin before I headed over to my Harley. As soon as I had my jacket and helmet on, we headed out towards the clubhouse. I gnawed on the inside of my cheek the whole way, hoping Chibs was still asleep by the time we got there.

**CHIB'S POV**

"Hap, do ya remember anything bout Ana before she enlisted?" I asked from underneath to engine of a piece of shit Ford Focus and old lady had demanded by fixed that day. The more shit I fixed; the more problems came up with the damn car.

"Uh, she was jailbait?" Happy said honestly. I shook my head and groaned as the oil plug refused to loosen.

"Not what I meant, brotha. Was she around a lot?" I asked over the sound of the clanging metal sounds he was making with the truck in the next bay. It was way to early for any of us to be awake, but Gemma had put her foot down when she came banging on the dorm doors to wake us up. We were the only ones daft enough to answer the door, so we were the only ones dragged out to the damn garage.

"Uh, I don't know. I was usually up in Tacoma back then. She came up with Ope once and she was here for the parties, maybe." Happy seemed like he struggled with remembering that far back. The banging stopped and I saw his feet walk towards the roll up doors.

"Ana! Did you come up to Tacoma with Ope one weekend?" Happy asked loudly.

"Jesus Christ." I groaned, just as the oil plug came loose, pouring oil all over my chest. I pulled an oil catch under the car and rolled out from underneath the piece of shit, disgusted with the tar black oil dripping off me. Ana's face usually cheered me up, but for some reason the sight of her standing outside the garage with Tara annoyed me further.

"Hey." She said with a shaky grin as I took the TM shirt off and threw it in the garbage. I cussed under my breath when I saw the damn oil had bled through to my wife beater.

"Aye, morning." I said, lighting a cigarette and leaning against the outer wall of the garage. I could tell she was uneasy, which I had to assume was because of Happy's question.

"Yeah! Y'all came up for that rally where I met that cheerleader. She was fucking tiny. I'm surprised my dick didn't kill her." Happy said with a nod and laugh as he turned to look at me. Apparently, my face didn't seem amused. He looked back towards Ana who started to look pissed. "Uh, I need to do something, not here." Happy said, walking back towards the clubhouse.

"Somethin' I should know, Ana?" I looked over at her as I flicked an ember off the end of my cigarette. She frowned, agitation all over her face.

"It was a long time ago, Chibs. Hell, I was still in high school." Ana said as she shook her head. I inclined my head and blew out a long trail of smoke.

"Wha' was a long time ago, Ana?" I growled. I didn't mean to show how pissed I was starting to get. I hated surprises, especially when everybody seemed so damn nervous about whatever it was they were surprising me with. Ana opened her mouth to say something until she saw Opie and Jax pull into the lot. Tara bit her bottom lip and turned towards them, giving Jax a funny look.

"Can we just talk about this later, babe? It's really not as bad as you're probably thinking." Ana said with a fluster to her voice. I shook my head and called Opie over. Jax looked from me to Tara and headed over as well, taking his gloves off slowly as he walked next to Opie.

"We're all sober now, so how about one of ya start talking." I said, looking from Opie to Ana.

**ANA'S POV**

Opie stood next to me on one side, with Tara and Jax on the other. I hated the look on Chibs' face. He looked pissed and hurt all together. I felt myself flipping between pissed and ashamed as I stared into his eyes. It didn't help that I felt Opie looking down at me as he spoke.

"Brother, it was over ten years ago. We spent some time together before she enlisted." Opie said, summarizing it all with massive simplicity. Chibs obviously wasn't satisfied with his explanation.

"So, ya were friends for a few months?" He asked sarcastically. I swallowed his words with a bitter taste in my mouth. Opie sighed and ran a huge hand over his face, pulling his hair out of his eyes.

"I don't know what you want us to say, Chibs. We knew each other for a long time since these two were attached at the hip. He and Donna took a break for a while, so we just kind of." I started to explain until Chibs held his hand up after flinging his half smoked cigarette down.

"Aye, I knew they split up for a year. Just spit it tha fuck out." Chibs said with a sigh. I could tell he was moving further from pissed and closer to hurt.

"It was two years. Donna moved off to go to some school and me and Ana started hanging out. Fine, I guess you could say we dated, I don't fucking know." Opie said growing agitated. He was always the clam one, so his mood wasn't helping calm me down.

"So ya dated for two years and didn't feel like I should know tha? Don't think I should know the two of ya fucked for two years before ya said you'd marry me?" Chibs spat at me. I hung my head a little as memories started flooding in.

"Chibs, really? I know she should have told you but they didn't have sex for two years. It wasn't until Ana moved in with him after Jax. Shit." Tara stuck her foot in her mouth as I shot her a look, begging her to shut the fuck up.

"You lying." Chibs snapped until I turned on my heel and stomped off with Tara close behind me. I climbed on my bike and slammed my helmet on, taking off with a squeal of my back tire. I knew Tara would follow me in the car, but I seriously didn't care. She knew where I was going, so it's not like I needed to go slow for her.

The sting of the hot sun and wind slapping at my bare arms did nothing to help my mood. I got that Chibs was hurt and I should have told him a long time ago. Opie and I ended it the day I shipped out for basic training, not that we'd ever been much more than friends as far as feelings went. If anything, he was more like a brother now, not some ex-boyfriend.

The look in Chibs' eyes when he'd called me a liar hurt a hell of a lot more than he knew. Yeah, I'd lied to a lot of people about why Opie and I lived together, but Chibs wasn't there back then. He had no right to judge me when he didn't even know the whole story. The story that I guess I should have shared a long time ago.

**CHIBS' POV**

"Both of you calm the fuck down. Brother, I get that you're pissed but you need to listen to him." Jax said with a firm hand on my chest, holding me back from Opie. In all the years I'd known Opie, I'd only seen him pissed a handful of times. His anger only pissed me off more. I was the one in the dark; he had no right to be pissed at how I talked to my old lady.

"You've got no fucking clue what she went through do you? If you did you wouldn't treat her like some fucking whore for something happened a decade ago." Opie spat at me as Jax shoved me back a little. Opie's question struck me hard and I stood still, looking up at him.

"Wha are ya talking about. Just fucking get it all out. I'm tired a this shit." I sighed, raking my hand through my graying hair. Opie nodded and walked towards the clubhouse, sitting on the top of the picnic table. Jax and I followed slowly as I lit another cigarette.

"Don't fucking interrupt me or I'm not telling you shit." Opie growled at me. His abnormal tone caught me by surprise, but I nodded.

"Jesus, okay. So, Donna and I broke up the summer after Ana's junior year. I was pissed and getting sick of being a third wheel to Jax and Tara. Ana was just a pissed off kid in general, so we started hanging out. She was always really mature for her age and I was only three years and some change older than her, so we could understand each other. Anyways, I knew she was a virgin and I really just wanted somebody to blow off steam with and forget about Donna. We'd go to the movies, go for rides on my bike, shit like that. It never got that serious and neither one of us cared. Well, then we got in some fight about the stupid fucking prom and stopped talking for a month." Opie hung his head and sighed as Jax clapped him on the back, offering him a cigarette with his other hand. Opie lit up as I took in what he'd told me so far.

I was relieved to hear they weren't actually serious for so long, but I was still pissed no one had told me a thing about it. More than that, I was starting to wonder where this story was going.

"So, she went to the prom with this jock. I don't know if it was to piss me off, or what. He ended up taking her to a park and pushing her into fucking. She called Tara who was at the clubhouse with me and Jax, so we headed that way." Opie's voice broke a little as he shook his head.

"We were too fucking late. He'd already fucking raped her. Jax killed the bastard and she just broke down. She was crying and flipping out, so I just tried to hold her back from hurting herself. Tara got there and she just completely shut down. She wasn't crying or screaming anymore or anything. She apologized to Tara and asked me to take her home. We got to her house and her dad was drunk and calling her all kinds of shit, just randomly. I grabbed some shit from her room and took her to the apartment I had." Opie looked over at me and nodded at the sickened expression on my face.

"She was different after that. She stayed with me and refused to talk about it. Instead of talking, we started hooking up and she started fighting anybody who gave her a reason to. I knew it wouldn't help shit but she seemed happier and stopped crying at night. We went up to a bike rally in Tacoma a couple weeks before she enlisted. She told me then that she was joining the Army and never coming back. I didn't want her to, but I couldn't bring myself to stop her either. I took time off from the garage and the club to be with her but she pushed me away. She shipped out for boot and I didn't see her again until she came back for their dad's funeral. I was married to Donna with a kid on the way. We never really talked again after that. She stayed in touch with Dad for a while, I think." Opie took a deep breath and nodded to nothing in particular.

"Opie, brother. I'm shouldn't have got pissed at ya. I wish ya'd told me before, but I guess I get it." I said with a sigh of my own. My chest hurt with the weight of my attitude towards Ana crushing down on me. She was right. It was a long time ago and I shouldn't have pushed her.

"Yeah, just don't say anything to Lyla about it. I don't need that shit on top of everything else." Opie said before getting up and heading into the bar. Jax was staring at me as he took Opie's spot on the table.

"I feel like a prick." I admitted, lighting my third cigarette. Jax nodded.

"Yeah, you kind of should. Look, Tara will make sure she calms down." Jax said as he pulled out his ringing phone. He tilted the screen towards me with a quick grin before answering it.

"Hey babe." He said with a smile that disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. I could hear Tara yelling on the other end of the phone.

"What? Tara, slow down. Where are you? Yeah, alright we'll meet you there." Jax jumped up from the table and ran towards the clubhouse. I followed right behind him as my stomach leaped into my throat.

"Hap! Opie, grab Juice, Bobby, Tig and Clay and head out to that pull off up on I-5 past Oswald's place. Ana got hit. Make sure we find out who by. Ope?" Jax said as our huge brother shoved past us.

"I'm going to the hospital Jax." He called over his shoulder. The word hospital jarred me out of the suspension I was in. Jax's words hit me all at once as ran out to the van, cursing the fact that my bike was sitting in our driveway. Opie was already out of the lot when Jax jumped up in the passenger seat beside me.

"What happened?" I snapped, pulling out in front of a taxi cab and spinning the van's tires. Jax gripped the dashboard.


	18. Chapter 18

"Tara said she was a few cars behind Ana and it looked like some dick in a pickup truck tried to pass her and clipped the back of her bike. Tara said it flipped into the pull off. She wasn't responding when she called me." Jax explained as I pulled into St. Thomas' parking lot. I saw Tara's SUV and parked next to it, wondering why she didn't ride in the back with Ana and assuming the worst.

"Jax!" Tara called, rushing into her old man's arms. She had black streaks running down her cheeks and blood on her neck. It was obvious she had tried to clean up most of the blood, considering she was now wearing a different shirt than just a couple hours ago. She got her sobbing under control and pulled away, looking at me with a frown.

"Chibs." She said, pulling me into a hug as I stood still. She hugged me for a few seconds. I swallowed hard and looked down at her.

"How is she?" I asked, worried I didn't want to know the answer. She frowned and shook her head a little.

"Not good, Chibs. She didn't respond in the ambulance and her pulse is really faint. Her right leg is definitely broken and she has cuts everywhere. I just don't know." Tara said as she started sobbing again. I felt tears well up in my own eyes and Tara's tears soaked my white wife beater.

"Where's Opie?" Jax asked Tara as she returned to his arms. She looked up and Jax and shook her head.

"He's down in my office. They were going to call security on him." Tara stuttered through her sobs. I nodded and headed down the hall to join him. I couldn't be around Tara for fear that I'd break down in front of her.

"Hey." Opie said, looking up from Tara's desk. His knuckles were red and swollen, I couldn't think of anything to say, so we just sat in silence. It was over two hours before a small knock came on the door. Tara walked in slowly with Jax right behind her.

"She's out of surgery. Her leg was broken in two places. They had to put screws in her femur. They stitched up the deeper cuts, but a lot of it is road rash, so they couldn't do much for that." Tara said weakly as Jax rubbed her back softly. She shook her head and walked out of the office. Jax frowned and sat on the couch adjacent to Tara's desk.

"She's still not awake. Doctors said the next forty-eight hours are crucial." He said, his voice cracking. I looked over at him and watched as he squeezed the bridge of his nose to stop the tears. Opie lit a cigarette and stared at the ceiling. I tried to feel something, anything, but all I felt was numb. The woman I loved might be dying because I was too much of an arse to listen to her. The devil on my shoulder told me I didn't have the right to feel anything.

As much as I tried to convince myself that she'd be okay, the worse I felt. Ana had been so hurt when she got on her bike. I should have stopped her and let the past shit with Opie go. Now, I might lose her.

"Fillip?" Jax called out my given name as I stood up and opened the office door. I couldn't look back at him and see the blame in his eyes. I walked out of the office, down the hall, and out of the hospital. As I got in the van, I took a deep breath, convincing myself I was doing the right thing. Putting it in drive, I headed back to the clubhouse for lack of a better plan.

**ANA'S POV**

"Tara?" I choked, opening my eyes slowly. The light was intense and blurred my vision terribly. The woman, who I assumed was Tara, walked over and stroked my hair. I rubbed my eyes with my hand. When I pulled it back, I realized there was an iv taped to the back. I frowned, trying my best to remember how I ended up in a hospital.

"Oh, Ana." Tara said as tears rolled down her cheeks. I gave her a weak grin.

"Hey, no crying Tara-bear." I said, trying to sit up a little. Tara rushed to help me, holding my shoulder as she put an extra pillow behind my back. I looked down and realized the extra weight on my leg turned out to be a cast. I bit my lip and tried wiggling my toes. Luckily, they responded. I laughed a little and looked over at Tara again.

"You painted my toenails?" I asked. I definitely didn't remember painting them purple. She laughed a little and nodded, kissing me on the forehead.

"Ana, you scared me so much. Don't ever do that again." She said, poking my arm a little. I didn't have the heart to tell her I had no idea what it is I was not doing again. My eyes caught her stomach, which was considerably larger than it had been before I woke up in the hospital. I looked away, focusing on the large bouquet of flowers on the side table instead.

"Do you remember what happened?" Tara asked nervously. I closed my eyes tightly, avoiding the conversation. She asked again, but I just laid my head back and took a deep breath.

"Well, hey there Ana! It's nice of you to join us. I'm Dr. Tarski. How are you feeling?" I opened my eyes and looked at the oriental woman standing in front of my flowers. I looked over at Tara and gave her a weak smile.

"Would you mind getting me a water and some ice chips?" I asked sweetly. I was truly thirsty, but I honestly didn't want Tara in the room while I talked to the doctor. Tara's smile turned down at the edges a little, but she nodded and headed out of the room, closing the door behind her.

"I feel okay. I'm just confused as to why I'm here. Obviously I have a bum leg, but I get the feeling there's more to it than that." I said, turning to the doctor who was now messing with my vital monitors. She nodded and took a minute before turning back to me.

"What do you remember, Ana?" She said, taking a seat in the leather-like chair next to the hospital bed. I furrowed my brow a little and bit my bottom lip.

"I got into an argument with my fiancé and headed out to this spot Tara and I used to hang out at." I said after some concentration. Dr. Tarski nodded with a smile.

"That's good, Ana. It's not atypical for someone not to remember the fifteen to thirty minutes prior to your type of trauma. Ana, you were involved in a motorcycle wreck. Honestly, it was one of the worst ones around here since John Teller's wreck back in ninety three." She said solemnly. "You came in with rode rash and lacerations. The worst of it was that leg there and your coma."

"What? How long have I been out?" I asked, starting to panic. She placed a warm hand on my forearm and smiled apologetically.

"Ana, your wreck was very serious. It has been forty-nine days since the accident. You started improving early last week, so I'm delighted to see you awake and so alert. I feel safe saying that you have probably avoided any permanent brain damage. You don't need to rush, but I do recommend you get into physical therapy as soon as possible for your leg. Your femur and tibia were both fractured." Dr. Tarski explained, pointing to different parts of my leg for reference. I nodded and gave her a little smile.

"If you need anything, please press that red button. I'm going to have a nurse come in and check your labs and come back later. If I'm not mistaken you have some visitors out in the hall." She pointed to the window and smiled as she headed out of the room.

Tara came in first. I could tell she'd been crying right away. Her eyes were all red and puffy, despite the smile one her face. She sat the cup of ice and bottle of water in front of me before taking a seat next to me.

"Do you feel up to visitors? I can tell them to come back, they just got all excited when I called Jax." Tara said with a laugh. I looked through the window at the group of leather-clad men. I couldn't see Chibs.

"No, it's fine. They can come in." I said with a forced grin. Tara waved and the room started to fill with the smell of cigarettes and cologne. I had to work harder to keep my smile on as the last Son entered the room. Jax, Tig, Bobby, Piney, Opie, Juice and even Happy were all crammed in the hospital room with Tara and I. Luckily, I didn't have a roommate.

"Hey darlin'. It's about damn time you woke up." Jax said with a smile and a kiss to my forehead. I grinned and nodded as I gave him a hug. His hair had grown some and he looked tired, but I could tell he was relieved. Tig walked up and took Jax's place, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and kissing my cheek softly.

"That's probably the last time you'll get to kiss me, Tig, so I hope you enjoyed it." I said, giving him a wink. His eyes lit up and he laughed before Bobby pushed him out of the way.

"Thought you might want some good food to wake up to." Bobby said, brandishing a large basket of muffins from behind his back. I laughed and nodded taking one and setting it by my ice as I thanked him. He gave me a quick hug before joining Tig who was begging for a muffin.

"Glad you're not dead, kid." Happy said as he stood beside my bed. I laughed, glad to see that Happy hadn't changed much since I wrecked. He patted me once on the shoulder and made his best attempt at a grin.

"Move you bald oaf." Piney said gruffly as he pulled Happy away. Happy's grin improved a little as he stole a muffin while Bobby was fussing with Tig. I laughed as I looked up at Piney.

"Hey old man. I see you're not doing that well at keeping them in line." I said as I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him on his stubble covered cheek. "You smell like tequila."

"Yeah, well I wanted to make sure not to change to much during your nap. Stop trying to beat me into the ground, okay?" He said with a chuckle. I caught a tear forming in his eye and nodded, worried I'd break down if I spoke.

"Hey, Juice. I see your hair hasn't improved any." I said as he walked up with a white, paper bag. He tried to scowl at me but laughed instead.

"Neither has yours. Glad you woke up to fix that shit though." He said with a smile. I ran my hand over my hair, but it was straight and down, thanks to Tara I assumed. I laughed and picked up the bag, opening it and looking in it for a minute before closing it quickly.

"Uh, thanks, Juice. Think you could keep that in the clubhouse for me? Don't think I should have a jar of weed in a hospital room." I said handing it back to him. I watched as Jax covered his face with his hand as he shook his head. Juice shrugged and nodded with a smile.

"Just let me know whenever you want or need it, Sarge." He stepped across the room and stood next to Tig who shoved his shoulder a little. Opie didn't move from the end of my bed where he had stood the entire time with his hands bracing him on the footboard. He wouldn't look up.

"Thank you all for coming. I'm sorry I put y'all through that. It means the world that you came to see me. Really." I said, breaking my strong façade at the end. Tara rubbed my arm gently and smiled. I took a deep breath and nodded, regaining my composure.

"You all can work out some type of visiting schedule later. Why don't you go check on Unser?" Tara said with a pointed look at Jax. He agreed and the guys starting filing out one by one. I looked over at Tara and frowned.

"What's wrong with Unser?" I asked curiously. Tara raised her brow and shrugged.

"Just a round of chemo. I'm going to go check on some patients." She said quickly as she gave me a kiss on the temple and hurried out of the room, pulling the door closed again. Opie was still holding himself up by the plastic at the food of my bed.

"Ope?" I said quietly. He looked up, finally, and gave me a feeble smile. I bit my bottom lip as it started shaking uncontrollably. He sighed and took Tara's seat by my right side. He sat silently for a minute as I struggled to slow my breathing.

"Where's" I started to ask him a question when he cut me off sharply.

"He got caught up at the clubhouse." Opie said quickly. I looked over at him and nodded slowly.

"Well, I was going to ask where Lyla was." I corrected him before looking away. He took a minute before sighing.

"Don't know. Haven't talked to her in a while. She left last month." Opie said quietly. I looked back over at him and frowned.

"I'm sorry, Ope." He nodded and took a deep breath. His beard had gotten more epic since I'd seen him last. I swallowed hard, not knowing what to say. I wanted to ask where Chibs really was, but I had a feeling he'd feed me the same line of shit again.

"How've you been?" I finally asked quietly. He looked up to my eyes and shook his head with a smirk.

"You check out for almost two months and you're worried about how I've been, Ana?" Opie asked incredulously.

"Well, we all know how I've been. Apparently I've been laid up in bed with a bum leg. Been on any interesting runs?" I said, fishing for him to share anything about the time I was "checked out."

"No. I haven't been on runs. I've been working in the garage and taking care of some shit at the clubhouse." He said moodily. I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Why not?" I asked, curious as to why he would stay off the road. The garage was their legit business, but the runs are where the Sons really made their money. Opie leaned back in the chair and crossed his arms over his chest.

"None of your business, girly." He said with a teasing smile. I rolled my eyes and reached behind me to remove the extra pillow Tara had given me. I groaned and huffed as I struggled to reach it. Opie laughed and stood to help me. He reached over me and pulled the pillow out, supporting me with a big hand on my bare back where the hospital gown was open. My eyes traveled up to his and I blushed.

Opie sucked his bottom lip in and bit down on it as I watched him, hyper aware of his proximity to me. I felt my cheeks darken further as I caught the familiar sent of cigarettes and old spice.

"Hey, Ana! Chibs is oh, uh, sorry." Tara said, barreling through the door into what must have looked like a heated moment. I thought I saw Opie's eyes flash with disappointment as he lowered me back down to the pillows and returned to his seat. Tara's face was as red as I'm sure mine had been moments earlier.

"Jax said Chibs was on his way. I just, uh, I have a patient in follow-up. I'll be back later." She said with a flustered rush. I nodded and gave her a little smile. She hurried back out of the room, leaving the door wide open this time.

"I guess I should go then." Opie said, running his hands from his thighs to his knees. I looked over at him and shrugged.

"You don't have to, Ope." I whispered. He stood up and nodded before giving my fingers a little squeeze.

"But I should. I'll see you later, girly." He didn't smile as he turned away. I watched him walk out of the door, biting the inside of my cheek harder than what was comfortable.

**a/n: W****hy wasn't Chibs there with the others? I guess we'll see soon. We're in for a bumpy ride ladies and gents.**


	19. Chapter 19

**CHIBS' POV**

I finished the pack of cigarettes I'd just started when Tara called Jax. I was standing outside of the hospital entrance when Jax and several other brothers headed back out to their bikes. Jax caught sight of me and hung back.

"Are you going in or do you plan on standing out here until visiting hours are over?" Jax nodded towards the doors with a raised brow. I tossed the empty pack into the garbage and looked back at him.

"How does she look?" I asked, knowing how disappointed Jax was. He sighed and looked up to the sky as he put his KD's on over his eyes.

"She's awake and talking. Even gave Tig and Juice a hard time. She's Ana." Jax said with an annoyed tightness to his mouth. I nodded and took a deep breath.

"Aye, I'll see ya at the clubhouse later, Jacky Boy." I said, clapping him on the back in a brotherly hug. Jax sighed and nodded.

"I'm sure you will." He said dejected as he walked over to his Dyna Super Glide. I probably deserved that, but it stung to hear it.

I walked down the hall slowly, looking for room 412. I looked up and saw Opie walking up the hallway. He nodded to me silently as he headed to the exit. Of all the brothers, Opie probably judged my actions the hardest.

I looked in the window to Ana's room for a moment before walking in. The sun was coming in through the partially closed blinds, shining on her hair to make it look like golden honey. Her leg was in a full cast and she had bandages on her neck and arms. I frowned and felt a wave of sorrow crash down over my head. She looked away from the arrangement on the table, staring intently at her toes instead.

"Ay, ya feel up to a visitor?" I asked, knocking lightly on the door. Ana looked up and smiled at me. The change in emotion hit me even harder than her injuries. She had looked so down until it turned to joy as she looked at me. I grinned at her and crossed the room swiftly.

"I'm sorry, Ana. I shouldn't have yelled at ya." I said, running my palms over her soft hair. She closed her eyes and shook her head as tears started their way down her cheeks. I kissed her lips softly.

"It's not your fault. I shouldn't have stormed off." She said, smiling through the tears. She kissed me again but didn't linger long. As I sat down, I couldn't help look at the huge, white cast encasing her left leg. She laughed a little and wiggled her toes.

"Chibs, I've had that damn cast for ever, or so they tell me. Why are you looking at it like it's brand new?" Her light words stung as they met my ears.

"Aye, I'm glad you're awake, Ana." I said, fighting the tears back from my eyes. Ana nodded and smiled, turning her head to look at me. Her smile was as bright as the first day we met. Her eyes were just as trusting as she looked at me.

I felt my throat closing in. I looked from Ana to the clock and stood. Ana stirred, looking at me with a slight frown. I took her hand and kissed her soft palm.

"I've got ta head out. I'm sorry. I'll try ta come back soon." I said, turning away as her eyes swelled with tears. Ana didn't say anything as I hurried out of the room and back down the hall. I didn't breathe until I exited back out to the parking lot. I bent forward, bracing my hands on my knees and exhaling deeply.

I started my Harley and quickly headed back to the clubhouse. The lot was full of SAMCRO bikes, but the air was heavy and severely lacking the typical festivities of Friday evenings. I walked inside and headed to the bar for a double of Jameson. The new, redheaded croweater behind the bar poured one for me with a seductive smile.

"What are you doing here?" Jax called over from the pool game with Happy. I downed the Jameson and wrapped my arm around Rebecca's or Jessica, I couldn't remember or care at the moment.

"Visiting hours ended early." I said with a smile on my face and a searing pain coursing through my veins. Jax narrowed his eyes and sighed as the croweater kissed me sloppily on the mouth.

Opie walked around the corner, heading to the bar from the dorms. His face darkened as he looked at me. The croweater was running her hand over the crotch of my jeans with flare. Opie turned on his heel, heading back down to his dorm as I sat on a barstool drowning my guilt in Jameson and the redhead's mouth.

"Ope!" Jax called out, grabbing my attention. Opie was back in the bar, with his shirt and kutte on. He ignored Jax and walked up to me, startling the croweater latched to my neck. He brought a fist up as I braced for the fight that was a long time coming. Instead, he grabbed the bottle of Jameson out from behind me. Holding it by the neck, he smashed it down on the edge of the bar, shattering the bottle and sending scotch everywhere.

"Opie, where are you going?" Piney asked, walking into the tense clubhouse. He shoved away from the bar and cut his eyes at Piney as he stormed out of the clubhouse.

"Hospital, where tha fuck else?" I growled, finishing the last of the Jameson in my third tumbler. Piney shook his head as he looked at me and sat down at the opposite end of the bar, getting a tequila from another croweater.

"Get off." I growled at the croweater as I stood up. I felt Jax's eyes on me as I headed to my dorm room alone for the first time in weeks.

**ANA'S POV**

Tara and two nurses came running in to the sound of a crash. They looked from me to the broken flower vase as I supported myself on the edge of the hospital bed. Tara ran over to me and did her best to hold me up with her hands underneath my arms.

"Ana! What are you trying to do? You just woke up from a coma! Who took your IV out?" Tara screamed as she finally gave in and allowed me to slide down to the ground. I could barely see her through my tears.

"I did. I know how to take fucking IV's out. I needed to read the card with the flowers. I wanted them to be from Chibs. Why weren't they from Chibs, Tara?" I broke down into sobs as she wrapped her arms around me. I felt the memories creeping up and my stomach lurched.

"Everybody fucking leaves me." I moaned as I slipped away from reality. I was back in the barracks with Briana. She was smiling and laughing at a little furball in sitting in her footlocker.

"Bri, you can't have a cat here." I said with a laugh as the kitten started pawing at her dangling dog tags.

"Oh, come on Ana. It's just a baby. I can't leave it outside for some roadside bomb to blow up. She needs me." She said with a laugh as she picked it up and cuddled it to her cheek. I rolled my eyes and moved over to her cot, petting the little cat with one finger.

"Promise me you'll take care of her if I don't come back one day." She said, suddenly serious. I dropped my hand and shook my head.

"Briana McClure, don't you say shit like that. We're stateside in less than a month." I said, standing to my feet. Briana sat the now sleeping kitten in her lap.

"Ana, please." She said looking up at me from under her thick eyelashes. I sighed and shook my head.

"I'm not taking care of the fucking cat but I'll keep my promise from before. You're going to make it back home and we're going to get out together. Then you can get a dog or something, not some desert cat." I said curtly. She covered the little cat's ears with her hands.

"You will not say that in front of Penelope Jean. If you don't make it I'll take care of your bike." She said with a wink.

"No, you won't fucking touch it." I said, with a laugh as she smiled her bright, happy smile up at me.

"Ana? Hey look at me." A voice said distantly. I narrowed my eyes, it didn't sound like Briana and she was the only one there with me. I looked behind me to see if anyone was there, but the barracks were empty. I turned back around and Briana was on the ground, bleeding everywhere with a smile on her face. I screamed and scrambled to hold her, but someone was holding me back.

"Damnit save her, don't touch me. Briana. I'll take care of the stupid cat, I'm sorry. Please wake up." I cried, sobbing until I could barely breathe. I looked down and saw large, tattooed arms around me.

"Ana, you're home. It's over." A familiar face said softly. I couldn't be home. If I was home then Briana was gone.

**CHIBS' POV**

I was lying in bed, staring at a picture of Ana and I on my phone. It was from our first night at the cabin. She was kissing my cheek and had taken my phone from me to take several pictures of she and I. I felt my chest tighten as I though about her accident. The accident that was my fault. I'd tried to drink the guilt away, but it never worked.

Finally, I came to the conclusion that I had to make her leave me. If she wasn't with me, then she wouldn't get hurt. I stayed away from the hospital and when I wasn't on the road, I was fucking a croweater or sweetbutt in my dorm. I hadn't even been home since our fight.

Seeing Ana in that hospital bed really fucked me up. She looked so happy to see me. She didn't even blame me. I knew I still loved her, but I wasn't right for her. She deserves better.

"Aye, I'm up what tha fuck do ya want?" I yelled at the door. The door flung open after several more loud hammers.

"You're going to drag your sorry ass out of here and go take care of your old lady. Tara called and said she lost it after you left. Now, I don't care what you've been trying to do with all that used up pussy, but whether or not you stay with that girl, you're going down there. Now." Piney yelled, growing winded and taking deep breaths through his nose so the oxygen tank would keep him from collapsing.

"What do ya mean lost it? She was fine." I asked as I stepped into my boots and grabbed my leather jacket and kutte.

"You really think she's that stupid? Coma or not she can read people. Hell, probably smelled the croweater funk on you. That woman is the closest thing I've got to a daughter now that Donna's gone." Piney growled with an unspoken threat. I nodded and hurried out of the dorm.

Jax was already waiting on his Dyna when I flew out of the clubhouse. Wrong for her or not, I loved her too much to see her hurt like that. With a nod to Jax, I followed him to Saint Thomas, praying I hadn't made her condition worse.

I barely took the time to down the stand as I rushed to get inside. Laying the bike down would be the least of my concerns. Jax hurried in behind me as I made my way back down to Ana's room. Tara was standing right outside Ana's window, arms folded across her chest and eyes focused on the interior of the room. I swallowed hard, wondering why she wouldn't be in there with her.

"Babe? Is she okay?" Jax said, rushing past me and pulling Tara into his chest. Her face was void of any emotion, which was never a good sign for Tara.

I looked from my VP's old lady to the window into Ana's room. She was lying motionless in the bed, eyes open but not focusing on anything or moving. I could tell she'd been sedated. The flowers from earlier were gone.

"What happened, doc?" I asked as I stared into Ana's hollow eyes. I hadn't missed Opie sitting in the chair by her bed. Instead of being pissed this time, I felt guilty for not being there myself.

"What happened? Seriously, Chibs? What happened was my little sister waking up from a fucking coma and being abandoned by her fiancé." Tara spat as Jax tightened his grip on her shoulders, holding her back.

"I didn't abandon her." I lied weakly. Tara scoffed and tried to push Jax away.

"Happy stayed in that room with her longer than you did. Do you understand that? A fucking psychotic killer stayed in my sister's room to visit her longer than her fiancé did. Jesus Christ." Tara said, raising her voice and attracting the attention of several nurses on the floor.

"Tara, could we not advertise Hap's business for everyone to hear? I get you're pissed and I agree with you but chill." Jax whispered, trying to soothe his pregnant old lady. I couldn't be mad at her. She was right.

I tapped on the window with my club ring to get Opie's attention. He turned reluctantly and sighed as I motioned for him to come out in the hall.

"What?" He asked simply as he pulled the door to behind him and leaned against the window. I wanted to snap and put him in his place for giving me attitude about my own old lady, but I'd lost that right.

"You see what happened, brother?" I asked, swallowing my pride. Opie glanced in on Ana before turning back to me with a nod.

"Most of it. Came in and she'd thrown the vase against the wall. Tara said she took her own IV out and climbed out of bed on that bum leg." He said, shaking his head and glancing at her again.

"I walked in when she was having flashbacks. She was talking to Briana about a cat. I tired to get her to snap out of it and she started screaming and reaching at the air. Wanted me to save Briana. Docs came in right after that and knocked her out. They were going to strap her down. Tara threatened to shoot 'em." He said with a smirk at Tara's ashamed look.

"How do you know about Briana?" I asked quietly. Opie lost any type of hold he had on his temper. He shoved me up against the glass, wrapping a massive hand around my throat. I didn't fight him. I deserved ten times worse. Jax took a minute, but he finally moved to pull Opie off.

"Not here, Ope." He said, laying a hand on Opie's shoulder. He scowled and let go against his better judgment.

"I tell you about your fucking fiancé, your fucking ole' lady having some ptsd flashback and you want to ask me how I know about her dead best friend?" Opie growled. I reflexively rubbed my neck where he'd grabbed it. He sighed and ran the same hand through his hair, pushing it out of his face.

"She called me after it happened. I've known since the day she died." Opie said, looking back in on Ana who now seemed to be sleeping.

"What? Opie, I didn't know that. She didn't tell me until she got back to New York." Tara said softly. Their conversation had me thinking back to the argument back at TM. They'd said they hadn't talked since her father's funeral.

"Yeah, well I don't know if she remembers calling me or not. She was doped up in some hospital. She kept asking why they took the kitten away. Don't see why it matters now." He said with a shrug. Something told me he wasn't referring to Ana's condition being the "now".

"I'll stay." I said firmly. Tara and Jax both looked over at me with surprise. I didn't respond.

"Alright. Ope, you gotta go get some sleep before you end up in a room down the hall." Jax said with a smile as he clapped Opie on the back of his kutte. Opie looked back in at Ana before nodding.

"Yeah, alright. I'll be back in the morning sometime." He said as he gave Tara a gentle hug.

"Okay, brother." I said with a nod as he turned back towards me. He narrowed his eyes.

"Didn't ask you." He said simply before nodding at me and heading out of the hospital. Jax and Tara announced they were going home as well before leaving me alone in the hallway.


	20. Chapter 20

**ANA'S POV**

It was difficult to open my eyes. The lids felt like they weighed a hundred pounds as I urged them open. I was freezing and my leg was killing me. I needed to get to that damn red button.

"Ana?" A quiet, Scottish voice came from my left. I fought my eyelids more, hoping he'd really be there once I could finally see. I was able to open them slightly, getting a glimpse of his ringed right hand on my wrist. I smiled sluggishly.

"Wha do ya need, love? A nurse?" He asked, running his calloused thumb over my skin. It brushed over a rough scab, causing me to frown at how rough I probably looked. I nodded and grunted.

"Aye, I pressed tha button. She's on her way." He said to me as I finally opened my eyes fully. The room was fairly dark and I wondered where the time had gone.

"Ms. Knowles? Everything okay?" A sweet sounding nurse asked as she stopped at the side of my bed.

"My leg is killing me and I'm cold, Molly." She smiled and nodded before turning and getting a blanket from the wardrobe on the opposite wall.

"I'm glad you remember my name. You gave us a scare last night. I'll go page Dr. Tarski and make sure we get you some good stuff for your leg." She said as she covered me with the large, wool blanket. It reminded me of the ones from deployments.

"How long have I been out?" I asked, looking over at Chibs after Molly left. He frowned and leaned forward, kissing the top of my hand lightly.

"Going on twelve hours. It's just past five in the morning now. Do ya remember what happened?" He asked, sitting back down but keeping a light hold of my hand. I looked over at the now empty table next to him and nodded.

"Yeah, I do. You left, I threw the flowers, Tara came in, my leg hurt and then they knocked my ass out." I said, skipping the part about falling apart in what could only be Opie's arms. Flashbacks and delusional or not, I could recognize his tattoos and voice.

"More or less." He said simply. It was obvious he knew about my breakdown. The fact that he skirted around it ticked me off. Not that I wanted to talk about it, but I blamed him.

"Yeah. Why'd you leave?" I asked, wondering what his answer would be when I asked him straight out.

"I told ya, love. I had to do some shit at the clubhouse. Nothing to worry about." He said with dull eyes. I was suddenly hot, no longer wanting the blanket. The pain in my leg and lack of medication stopped me from filtering my words.

"Yeah, I'm sure you did. Do you want to know something funny, darling?" I asked with a sarcastic smile. He frowned and seemed to know I was upset.

"Love, don't upset yourself. Ya need to get better." He said, trying to soothe me with his voice. This time, the accent wasn't working.

"Upset myself? Maybe I wouldn't upset myself if you'd been here." I snapped just as Molly came back in with an uncomfortable look.

"Ana, I'm sorry to interrupt you. I was talking to Dr. Tarski and looking over your chart. She and the chart said you refuse anything but Tylenol, is that right? I can page the doctor on call if you want to change it." She said, concern written all over her face. I shook my head.

"No, Molly. Just Tylenol or something like that. I don't want any narcotics." I said with a reassuring grin. She sighed and nodded, handing me two pills and turning to leave. I looked up when she turned back.

"Ana, we're way past visiting hours. The only reason he can be here is because of Tara. That being said, if things get loud or if you, well," She stumbled over her words, trying to soften the truth.

"If I have another episode of PTSD." I supplied for her with a nod.

"Yeah, if that happens, it'll be out of Tara's hands. He'll have to leave." She said apologetically, refusing to look at the glare Chibs was giving her. I nodded and let her know I understood before she left, closing the door behind her.

"I'm sorry, Ana. I was an arse for leavin' earlier. I shoulda told Clay no." Chibs said softly, rubbing my thumb with his.

"Stop. I didn't almost die to wake up and have my fiancé lie to me. I'm surprised you even came by earlier." I said, sick of feeling pathetic.

"Why would you be surprised?" He said weakly. I stared up at the light above me to sting away tears. I refused to let him see me cry.

"Right after you left, Molly asked who you were. I thought she was crazy. She said she'd worked six days a week for the past five weeks and she'd never seen you before. She knows some of the others by name." I said, swallowing a sob and refusing to look at him as he squeezed my hand a little.

"She asked if you were a friend of my fiancé. I fucking laughed. I laughed because I thought she was stupid. She said she thought Opie was my fiancé because he was here more than Tara. He apparently offered to pay her to sneak him in after visiting hours. She didn't take the money, but he came during the night sometimes." I said flatly. I heard Chibs sigh before he let go of my hand.

"I didn't know he came at night." He said simply. I swung my head around and stared at him.

"Are you fucking kidding me? You leave me in a hospital for over a month and you want to talk about where your brother goes at night? Why weren't you here Fillip? Why didn't you come at all?" I struggled not to yell at him.

"Damnit Ana. I didn't come because it was my fault you got in that wreck. I shouldn't have yelled at you. I should have listened. I thought if I stayed away you'd realize I wasn't good for you. I stayed away because I love you too much for you to get hurt again." He said as his eyes started to glisten with unshed tears.

"Oh, you love me so you fucking abandon me?" I snapped as he rose to his feet and started pacing.

"Ya weren't abandoned, Ana. Opie was here and obviously you and he are closer than I thought. Ya told 'im about Briana first, ya know that?" Chibs growled at me. I was livid that he was getting angry when he was the one that hurt me.

"Yeah, I know that, I'm not stupid. I called him from Germany while I was in the hospital. What does it matter? So Opie was here with me, okay. What were you actually doing? Don't lie to me. Don't disrespect me like that." I said, losing quite a bit of strength behind my anger. Chibs ran his hand through his hair.

"Damnit, Ana. I'm sorry. I thought if I could drink I could stop caring and it wouldn't hurt so damn much. When the road and the whiskey didn't help I got desperate." He said. I watched speechlessly as tears started falling from his sad eyes. I wanted to reach out to him and comfort him, knowing that drinking doesn't fix shit. Before I could say anything or reach out, he started speaking again, softer than before.

"I'm sorry, love. I thought they would do wha tha whiskey couldn't, but you were always on my mind and ripping at me heart." He said as he hung his head. I felt like a Harley was sitting on my chest. I shook my head as I bit my lip. I already knew the answer before I asked.

"What do you mean, they?" I asked, unable to take my eyes off of him.

"The fucking croweaters and gashes on the road. I thought that if." I raised my hand and stopped him. We looked at one another in silence as the world started crashing down around me. The man that I'd given my whole heart to had tried to forget me in between some whores' legs.

"Get out." I said softly. Chibs started to walk over to my side as I shook my head. "No, Chibs. Leave. If you weren't here then, there's no point in coming around now. Maybe you were right. Maybe I'll realize that we can't work. Tara has the ring, I think. Please, just go."

I felt tears start falling down my cheeks against my efforts not to cry. He looked as broken as I felt. As broken as he caused me to feel. He nodded and grabbed his kutte from the chair before leaving without another word.

I looked out of the window as the sun was starting to rise. It was painfully ironic that the sky was so beautiful when all I could feel was pain. I pressed the red button slowly.

"Hey, what do you need?" Molly asked a few minutes later. I had been able to dry my eyes just in time.

"I'm sorry. Do you think you could call that doctor after all? My leg is still killing me. I'll sign whatever I need to." I said with a forced smile. She nodded with her sweet smile and hurried out to do as I requested.

Twenty minutes later, Molly came in with a fluid bag and started rigging it to the hanger behind me. I caught the morphine label as I looked up at it. She started the drip and instructed me on how it would start working. I wasn't listening. I didn't need to. I just nodded absently, waiting for the medicine to take the pain away.

**OPIE'S POV**

"Are you going to talk to me, Ana?" I had been sitting in the room for almost half an hour. She'd been awake when I got there. She was conscious, but seemed distant.

"About what, Ope?" She asked quietly, turning over to her side and bringing her right leg up towards her chest as her left leg stuck out in the full cast. I hated seeing that bright white reminder of how much she'd been through.

"I don't care. Anything? You could tell me what's bothering you or you could tell me what you want Happy to bring you for breakfast." I suggested, reading the third text from Happy with that exact question.

"I'm not hungry. Fine, don't give me that look. Just tell him to bring me oatmeal then." Ana said, rolling her eyes at my scowl.

"I'm telling him to bring you a breakfast burrito. You hate oatmeal." I said, sending the message to Happy. Ana hitched her shoulder and stared off into space.

"Hey, Ms. Knowles! Molly told me I needed to change out your morphine drip, okay?" A male nurse asked as he walked in with a bag of morphine. I snapped my phone shut and held it against my forehead as I leaned forward and rested my elbow on my knee. Ana didn't respond to the nurse at all, she just moved her eyes to look into mine. The nurse took forever to change it out. Ana stared at me the whole time.

"Ana, I know your leg is fucked up but you said you don't take that shit anymore. That came from you. You said after Briana" I started to say until she frowned at me. I couldn't bring myself to bitch at her with that look.

"I don't want to talk about her, Opie. It's fine. It takes the pain away." She said with a weak grin. I wanted to ask her what pain she was referring to, but Happy walked in right then.

"Hey girl. Here's your food. Brought the shit to do your cast." Happy said, talking more in that sentence then he had the entire day yesterday.

"Thank you. Make it gnarly." She said, glancing up at him as he pulled up a chair and got out markers to draw on her cast.

"Yep." The normally straight faced killer said with a hint of a grin. It wasn't like him to do nice things like draw on casts. I had a feeling Chibs' shit got to him to.

"You need to eat, munchkin." I said with a smile, hoping to get some type of reaction from her.

"Not a munchkin." She said, just as she had when we were younger and I first started calling her that.

"You're almost as talkative as you were when you were in a coma." I said as I leaned back and watched as Happy drew a huge, detailed skull on the side of cast.

"I still talk more than Happy." She said lightly. Happy looked up at the mention of his name before grunting and getting back to drawing. "Did all my talking this morning. Didn't go well. Talking sucks."

"What?" I asked, surprised at her wordy response. She sighed and I noticed how large her glassy pupils were. She was definitely getting more morphine than she needed for her leg.

"Learned about the whores and whiskey. You should ask your brother. I don't want to talk about it." Ana answered simply as she reached for her burrito. I gripped the arm of the chair and tried to keep from storming down to the clubhouse. I'd seen him sitting at the bar when I left.

"You want some pretty flowers, Ana?" Happy said as he shaded the skull in. He'd obviously done it to throw us off of subject. I gave him a thankful nod as she laughed.

"Put pretty shit on that cast and I'll break your pretty face." Ana said with a full mouth. Happy flipped her off and started on a drawing of what looked to be a raven with a dead rat in its beak.

"Hey guys." Tara said as she walked in the room. Ana held up her burrito in a sign of welcoming before taking another bite out of it. Tara raised her eyes at me in question.

"Move, Hap. I gotta piss." I lied as I stood to leave. Happy grumbled something but moved out of the way for a brief moment. I walked out to the hall and took Tara's elbow, leading her with me.

"What's up with her? She seems high." Tara said looking up at me. I adjusted my beanie and nodded uncomfortably.

"Yeah, she had them switch her to morphine this morning before I got here." I said, bracing for one of Tara's epic freak outs. She just nodded and smiled.

"Oh, okay. When did Chibs leave?" She asked with a smile. I had to close my mouth quickly before throwing Ana under the bus. She obviously never told Tara about her relationship with morphine after Briana died. I would have wrung her neck if she wasn't already broken up.

"Sometime this morning after telling her about his dick in other." Tara clapped her hand over my mouth and shook her head.

"Could you keep it down? Nurses like to gossip and I don't want to hear that shit from them. He told her?" Tara whispered as she pulled her hand away from me quickly.

"Apparently. She doesn't want to talk about it though. Doesn't really want to talk at all." I said, twisting my mouth with distaste at how fucked my brother had her head.

"Looks like she's talking to somebody." Tara said, nodding towards the window with wide eyes. I turned around and saw Ana talking away to Happy. He kept drawing, but the look on his face made it obvious what she was talking about.


	21. Chapter 21

**ANA'S POV**

"So, what am I supposed to do? Fuck him while I'm in a coma so he doesn't need to get his feel from the trash at the clubhouse?" I spat before taking another bite of the delicious burrito. Something about the lack of pain and the lack of responses from Happy made me talkative.

"Uh, that's dancin' in Tig territory." Happy said with a dark grin. I laughed and nodded before immediately frowning.

"I guess I was just so fucking hideous that he had to leave and fuck a whore." I said, almost feeling bad about myself. The morphine was coursing through my veins though, so all I felt was a tingle and tickle aside from the numbness.

"Nah, you were still hot." Happy said, briefly looking up at me before going back to drawing on the cast. I grinned and went back to eating for a few minutes.

"He seems jealous of Opie or something. It's not like Opie told him not to come here. We fucked years ago and you'd think he caught us in a dorm." I grumbled through the egg and tortilla in my mouth. Happy looked up at me but didn't respond. It was hard to tell what he was thinking, so I was glad I didn't care.

"You think I was right to break it off with him?" I asked, knowing he probably wouldn't answer me. Even if he did, he wouldn't bad mouth a brother. He closed his red permanent marker and tossed it on the bed by my leg.

"I don't do the whole ole lady shit, Ana. I don't know if you should tell him to fuck off or marry him. All I know is you seem hurt and it sounds like he's the reason you're hurt and pumpin morphine into a leg that shouldn't need that much in a whole day. Do what makes you happy. Life's too damn quick to end to do shit that makes you unhappy." With that, Happy stood up and headed towards the door. "I'll be back. I need coffee."

The amount of words and wisdom that came out of the least talkative person that I've ever known shocked me. Even through the buzz of the morphine, I could feel his words hit home.

**OPIE'S POV**

"Bitch talks to much doped up." Happy stated as he swung the door closed behind him. Tara and I stood in silence as he headed off towards the waiting room. She shrugged and headed into Ana's room. I took a minute to process what we had watched before walking into the room.

"Hey, girly. I think you may have talked the coffee out of Happy." Tara said with a laugh as she went to check out the art on her cast. "That's definitely different than boring signatures."

I looked over her shoulder at what he'd finished so far. There was the large black and grey skull, the raven with a bleeding, dead rat in its beak, a black, dying flower, and he'd just started on what looked to be a cat killing a bird. I smiled, knowing she would probably want to keep the damn thing once they cut it off. Happy had done her first tattoo in Tacoma. It was a skull with a dagger through it on her upper thigh.

"Yep, it's legit." Ana said with a grin as she leaned up to look at it. Luckily, her voice got my mind off of thinking about her thighs. I wasn't about to go down that road, especially now.

"Are you in pain? They've got your drip going pretty fast." Tara said with a frown as she looked over at the morphine. Ana just nodded. Tara obviously didn't have the heart to risk putting her in more pain and left the drip alone.

"I talked to Dr. Tarski this morning. She said that as long as you felt up to it and kept improving, you could possibly go home in a couple weeks. You'll still be in that cast for another couple weeks after that though." Tara said with a smile. Ana's face darkened and she looked up at the ceiling.

"Don't really have a home to go to. Besides, if I have this fucking cast on I'll need somebody to help with shit. Don't have anybody like that even if I wasn't homeless." She grumbled. Her harsh words to Tara reminded me why she said she'd gone to get help for her morphine use. Once it masked the pain, she said she could go from happy to pissed instantly.

"You aren't homeless, Ana. You've got family that loves you and cares. Just because he wants to be a dick doesn't mean the rest of us are. Hell, Gemma would probably put you up at her house if you wanted to." I said with a teasing smile, hoping to snap her out of it.

"Yeah, okay. I'm going to sleep. Tell Happy he can keep drawing if he wants." Ana said as she grabbed her pillows and closed her eyes. I ran my hand down my beard as Tara frowned. We walked out to the hallway so she could go to sleep before anyone came back in.

"Opie, look, I know it's not the ideal situation and you two ended things a long time ago, but she's your friend. I'm going to be there with her every step of the way but she'll need you to. I know there's things she won't share with me. You need to settle shit with Chibs and be there for her, please." Tara said as she looked up at me with big brown eyes.

I knew my brother and I needed to clear the air and patch shit up, but I was trying to wait until I didn't want to kill him. Even if it wasn't for Ana, we were both SAMCRO and if shit started picking up again, we couldn't have bad blood. It could get somebody killed.

"She asleep?" Happy asked as he walked up with a two cups of coffee. He handed one to Tara and one to me. I nodded a thanks.

"Yeah, think so. She said to tell you to keep drawing if you want to." I said before drinking some of the coffee. Happy turned his head a little as he looked in through the window.

"Might as well finish it before she wakes up talking again. You coming in?" He asked looking back at Tara and I. I sighed and shook my head as Tara nodded.

"I've gotta go talk to her old man." I said before finishing my coffee. Happy furrowed his brow a little.

"Don't think I'd call him that." He said flatly before opening the door and walking in quietly. He obviously didn't want her to wake up and talk to him some more. Tara laughed quietly and gave me a hug before following Happy and closing the door carefully.

The whole ride back to TM, I tried to think about how to calm down enough to actually have a conversation with Chibs. He and I had always been on good terms before, but this shit with Ana didn't sit right with me. I knew it wasn't out of the ordinary to fuck croweaters, attached or not. Hell, I'd done it myself while Lyla and I were together. The problem was who Chibs' old lady was.

I walked in to the clubhouse and didn't bother looking any further than the bar. Chibs was sitting there with a full glass of Jameson, staring off into space. I took a deep breath and walked up, taking the seat next to him.

"Morning." I said gruffly. I didn't know what else to say without jumping right into the heavy shit.

"How is she?" Chibs asked, not looking at me. I sighed and leaned back against the seat.

"Doped up. Only person she's really talked to this morning is Happy." I said with a shrug. I was curious as to what she had told him, but Happy was the most loyal person I knew. Unless it was important to the club, he wasn't going to repeat anything she talked to him about.

"Sure he loved that. I told her everything." Chibs said as he picked up his Jameson. I nodded.

"Yeah, I got that much out of her. Look, we can't let this shit in the club. I'm pissed and I know you are to but we're still brothers. Luckily shit's died down for now, but if it hits the fan, we've still gotta have each other's backs." I got it out in the open as quickly as I could.

"I know, brotha. Don't matter if I'm pissed or not. You mind answerin' a question though?" Chibs asked, setting the empty glass down on the bar and looking over at me. I nodded my head and looked him in the eye.

"Before she left for the Army, you loved her." Chibs said, meeting my eyes.

"That's not a question." I said simply. I already didn't like where the train of thought was going.

"Aye, it wasn't meant ta be. Question is, when did ya fall back in love with my ole lady?" Chibs growled as he poured another half glass. I shook my head and stood up.

"Brother, I never stopped loving Ana. Besides Donna, she's the only woman I was ever in love with." I told him as I realized the fact myself. Chibs nodded and threw back the Jameson.

"Were you ever going to say anything about it?" Chibs asked as he stepped away from the bar. I shook my head and hooked my thumbs on my belt.

"She was happy. That's all that matters is if she's happy. She decides that's with you, I still won't say anything. If that happens, you won't break her damn heart again." I told him with a shrug. He nodded and turned towards the door. I headed back towards the dorms to try and catch up on some sleep.

**Just wanted to take a minute to say thank ****you so much to all the wonderful people that have been kind enough to leave reviews. I'm so happy to see you all are as invested as I am :) Happy Thanksgiving to all my US readers**


	22. Chapter 22

**ANA'S POV**

I woke up in my hospital room alone. I could see the pink and orange in the sky as the sun went down. My cast was no longer white, which made me smile a little. Happy must have spent most of the day drawing all over it.

I laughed when I saw a drawing of a teddy bear up near my knee. It looked normal unless you looked close enough to see that the eyes were bullet ends. Other than that, everything was dark and involved blood, a lot of black, or a detailed picture of a gun. Without even sitting up, I could see at least ten skulls.

The morphine must have run out while I was sleeping, because after inspecting my cast, everything seemed to come back to me. I thought about the look on Chibs' face when he left the room. He'd looked so hurt, almost as hurt as I felt. My left hand felt naked without the ring that I had worn for such a short time.

I sighed and stared at the television. It was currently on the news. Even muted, I could tell they were talking about an Army Reserve unit being deployed from Oakland. It made me think of how Chibs would have dealt with deployments if he couldn't even be faithful while I was in a coma.

Briana had gotten a "Dear John" letter while we were on our first deployment. Her boyfriend at the time wrote and told her that he'd run into an ex-girlfriend on his college campus. They'd apparently reconnected and he waited two months before telling her. The day she got the letter, we'd just got in from a twenty-four hour patrol through some half leveled town.

I helped her burn the wedding magazines her mom had sent her in her last care package. She swore she'd never date a civilian again after that. She kept her word and stuck to casually dating while we were stateside, only to break it off before we redeployed. I smiled as I remembered her asking me why I didn't date anybody.

"Ana, you're breaking hearts around here. You'll go on one date and then never call them back. You're like the asshole guy we girls complain about." She had said with a laugh.

I had been trying to go to sleep and avoid the conversation to kill two birds with one stone. Briana wasn't having it though. She grabbed my Kevlar helmet and I had lunged for it, knowing she'd ask questions. I was sore from our last workout and she was too fast.

"Who, pray tell, is this? You mean to tell me I've known you for over four years and I'm just now seeing this?" Briana had asked, staring at the only other picture I kept on me, besides a childhood pic of Tara and I. She'd been so excited to hear all about a guy I was hung up on back in Charming. Even though I told her he was married, she insisted she would have a talk with him when we got home.

"You're such a home wrecker, Briana. Trust me, I was just a place holder while he and his girlfriend were broken up." I had said, taking my helmet back and putting the picture back in its place.

"Bullshit, Knowles. When we go to California on our road trip, we'll have to bring him back to New York in your duffle bag." She'd giggled.

"Glad to see you smiling." Chibs said, jogging me out of my memory. I couldn't hear Briana's laugh anymore. I shrugged and sat up as my smile faded.

"Yeah, not much to smile about these days." I said as he sat down in what had been Happy's chair. He looked at my cast and smiled a little.

"Nice art." He said before leaning back and looking me in the eye. I nodded and smirked.

"Yeah, Happy spent most of the day here working on it." Chibs sighed and nodded. I nodded, happy my point had been made.

"Ana, I know if the tables were turned, I wouldn't take ya back. I'm an asshole. I don't deserve ya, Ana. That doesn't stop me from wantin' ya back though. I'd do anything, love." Chibs said as he leaned forward. I took a deep breath and let it out in a huff, shaking my head.

"You'd do anything except stop the Jameson, I take it. You smell like the bottom of a whiskey barrel, Chibs. I can't do this right now. I love you, Chibs. I do." I said, feeling a damn tear rolling down my cheek. I hit the red button and leaned back.

"I love you too, Ana. I messed up, love. I promise, when you get home I'll make it up to you somehow." Chibs said, taking my hand. I closed my eyes and waited until I heard the door open.

"Ana! Shit, I'm sorry. I went on lunch. Barry was supposed to make sure your morphine was changed. Dr. Tarski is coming by in the morning to talk about pain management but until then we want to make sure you're comfortable." Molly said as she hurried over and hung a new bag of morphine for me. I nodded and gave her a little smile. She squeezed my shoulder and gave me a smile before heading back out to the nurse's station.

"How's my bike?" I asked a few minutes later. I looked over as Chibs shifted uncomfortably.

"Love, can we talk about that later? I need to know I haven't screwed this up for good." Chibs choked out. I raised my brow at him and sighed.

"Just tell me how my Iron is." I said, exasperated. Chibs slammed his back into the chair and stared at me.

"It's fixed. It's even got some upgrades. Love, please don't shut me out." Chibs finished quietly.

"What do you mean it's fixed? Judging by my leg and the whole coma thing, it should be fucked." I asked, thinking about the wreck Tara had described to me.

"Jax and Opie fixed it and Happy tuned it." He explained reluctantly. I smiled and nodded, happy to know my bike was waiting on me when I got out of the cast. I grabbed the cellphone Tara had brought me and sent Jax and Happy both a quick text to thank them. I knew Opie would be by sooner or later, so I'd just tell him then.

"Does your leg still hurt?" Chibs asked as he looked above my head at the morphine. I shrugged and nodded a little. He narrowed his eyes and shook his head.

"Aye, that shit's addictive, love. Ya shouldn't take it if ya can help it." He said, reaching out and rubbing the back of my hand. I turned my head to look at him and rolled my eyes.

"You shouldn't fuck croweaters while your fiancé is in a coma if you can help it." I said sarcastically. Chibs pulled his hand back and nodded slowly as he stood up.

"When you're done doping up, let me know. I love you, Ana. Let me know if that still matters to ya." He said as he walked towards the door. I unmuted the television and turned it to Cartoon Network, just to fill the silence.


	23. Chapter 23

**ANA'S POV**

As soon as I heard Opie's bike in the driveway, I hurried into my bedroom to get dressed. I'd taken a shower a couple hours earlier, but had gotten too sidetracked to actually change out of the towel I was wrapped in.

From the closed bedroom door, I couldn't make out what he was saying, but it was definitely grumpy. I rolled my eyes and just threw on a t-shirt and leggings instead of searching for anything for tonight's party.

"Ope, what are you grumbling about?" I asked as I walked back into the living room. He was sitting on the couch with his back towards me.

"Getting bled dry by this little devil." He growled as he jerked his hand back. I peered over his shoulder to see a tiny black and white kitten looking up at me innocently. It was almost all black except its white paws and white tip on its tail.

"Opie! Awww it's so cute!" I whispered as I picked it up and cuddled it to my chest. I could feel it purring and found myself smiling again. I knew it meant a lot to Opie when I smiled, so I was happy not to fake this one.

"Cute but deadly. My chest looks like I got in a knife fight." He said, pulling his shirt collar down and revealing numerous red scratches.

"You should have let her ride in your saddle bag." I said with a laugh as it started playing with a strand of my hair.

"Yeah, so I've heard. Ana, I wanted to talk to you about something." He said seriously as I sat down on the couch and pet the little kitten to sleep. I looked up with a smile.

"I stopped by the clubhouse and Chibs pulled me outside to talk about you." He started, causing my smile to dim a little. I'd done my best to avoid seeing or talking to or about Chibs, so Opie mentioning him didn't sit well.

"The point is, you need to talk to him. Just settle stuff and give both of you some closure." He spoke softly, knowing that the subject was liable to cause an argument. I sighed and nodded as I focused on the silky feeling of the kitten's belly.

I felt Opie's hand on my knee and looked up. He was looking at me in a strange way. I couldn't place if he was worried or happy. Despite the clubhouse whispers and gossip, we hadn't gone further than cuddling.

With that being said, every time I felt his skin on mine or the brief feel of his kiss on my cheek or forehead, an electric current prickled over my skin. I knew he wouldn't make the first move. He was too loyal to his brother and worried about my ability to cope.

As if to give me the go ahead, the little kitten crawled off of my lap and curled up in my soft, fur throw. I took his hand from my knee and intertwined my fingers into his. He knelt down before me and placed his other palm on my cheek gently.

"Ana," Opie spoke softly. I knew if he continued, he would question this or pull away. With a shake of my head, I leaned forward and kissed him. It was a brief kiss, but it was enough to stop his objections. I looked at him through hooded eyes as I pulled back.

Opie ran his hand behind my head and pulled me closer to him. He kissed me, gently at first. Soon, it deepened and my fists were full of his hair. With every passing moment, I felt the weight of the last few months lifting off of me. For the first time in what seemed like forever, the coma didn't matter and I didn't ache for a pill to take my pain away.

My mouth parted and accepted his tongue happily. He tasted warm and familiar. It had been years since the last time I'd kissed Opie, but it still felt right. His hands found their way to my hips as he rose and pulled me up in his arms. I moaned softly as he bit my bottom lip and ran his tongue over it.

His knees landed on my bed and he lowered me slowly onto the bed. We'd shared the bed for a couple weeks now, but never like this. I caught my breath as his mouth moved down to my neck. My hands moved their way to his kutte and pushed it down his arms and off his back.

I raised my back and allowed him to slip my t-shirt over my head. I smirked as his eyes flicked to my braless chest. In the rush to get ready, I'd skipped panties and a bra. His large, calloused hand cupped my breast and his cold ring slid over my nipple, arousing it quickly. I rested a hand on the side of his neck and traced his moth tattoo with my thumb.

"Please, Opie." I whispered as his mouth seized my nipple between his teeth. I felt him smile against my breast as I ran my hand down his shirt and up underneath, taking in the feel of the muscles beneath his skin.

He released my reddened nipple from his mouth and allowed me to pull his shirt over his head. I kissed the anarchy symbol on his chest and made quick work of his belt before he stood up. I worried that he'd decided to pull back, but instead he pulled his boots and socks off before looking down at me with a warm grin.

I longed for Opie to rejoin me on the bed. I was already missing the feel of his mouth or hands on me. I wasn't kept waiting long before he ran his hand through my hair and kissed my lips with equal desire. I was moments away from ridding myself of my leggings, when there was a dull vibrating coming from the floor.

I let out a sigh as he dropped his forehead on mine and groaned before climbing off and getting his phone from his kutte. I sent up a silent prayer that he would be able to stay with me and pick up where we left off. The call was quick.

"Ana, come here." Opie said gruffly before tossing his phone on the bed. I swallowed hard and rose, pressing my bare chest to his. He undid the zipper and button of his jeans and kicked them off as I claimed his mouth with mine.

Opie ran his hand down my stomach and under my leggings, smirking against my lips as he discovered I wasn't wearing any underwear. He ran two long fingers down my center and entered me slowly. I moaned into his mouth as my abdomen warmed and tightened with pleasure.

I shimmied my leggings down as he moved his fingers in and out of me. Once the leggings were on the floor, Opie playfully tossed me back on the bed before hovering over me and trailing kisses up and down my neck.

I lost myself in the feel of his lips and hands on me. I peeled his boxer briefs off and smirked at him as I pushed him off of me. His eyes glazed over once I situated my self over him and slowly lowered my hips down so he entered me slowly.

"Jesus, Ana. I've missed this." He said as he leaned his head back. I ran my hands over his chest and shoulders as I moved my hips back and forth. I decided to keep it slow, despite the yearning inside of me to go faster and harder.

Opie's hands were on my hips, but he let me control the pace. I relished in the warmth of his hands on my skin and the fullness inside. I was building up inside as tingles ran up and down my spine. I moaned as the pleasure burst into pure bliss.

"Baby, open your eyes." Opie growled as he rolled me onto my back and thrust into me, extending my pleasure and reaching his own shortly there after. As he found his release, he leaned down and kissed me deeply, as if to thank me.

I could still feel my insides pulsing as I watched him get off of the bed and head into the bathroom. A smile crept across my face as my breathing returned to normal. Being with Opie was even better than I had remembered.

"Ana? Are you going to lay there smiling or get ready?" Opie asked with a laugh as he emerged from the bathroom and started getting redressed. I groaned and rolled over to my stomach, watching him intently as he pulled he jeans on. I reached out and grabbed the chain hanging down from his belt and pulled him to me.

"Thank you for the kitten." I whispered before kissing him softly on the lips. He smiled and ran a thumb over my still swollen nipple.

"Your welcome. Now get dressed before I end up naked again." He playfully smacked my ass and laughed as I let out a little yelp.

**OPIE'S POV**

I was playing with the kitten, which Ana had decided to name Fiona, for over twenty minutes as I waited for her to finish getting ready. I couldn't help consider the option of just staying home and taking her to bed again.

"I see you have more battle wounds." Ana said with a laugh as Fiona wrapped both of her paws around my hand, sinking claws into my skin. I shrugged and shook my hand free.

"I've had worse, just not from anything so tiny." I laughed and smiled as Ana lowered herself over me. Her knees were resting on the couch with her ass sitting on my thighs. She kissed me and ran her hand behind my head before pulling away and smiling brightly.

"Mine." She said with a wink as she pulled my beanie on her head. I narrowed my eyes but couldn't bring myself to take it back. She looked cute and sexy at the same time.

"Let's go before you steal anymore of my clothes." I growled and stood up, taking her up in my arms. She laughed and pushed her palms into my chest.

"Let me down, sasquatch." Her smile made me feel like the past few years of complete shit had been worth something. There was no doubt that I missed Donna and would always love her, but Ana made me happy. With her, I could just be myself and not have to force a smile, with Ana, they just came naturally.

I raised my brow as she grabbed a helmet out of the closet. She hadn't ridden since her wreck and had been told to take it easy at first.

"Don't look at me like that, Ope. I'm just riding bitch." She said before sticking her tongue out. I shook my head and grabbed my keys before we left the sleeping kitten and headed back to the clubhouse.

I started getting anxious the closer we got to TM. I knew Ana was interested in me, but I didn't know how deep that interest ran. What made matters worse, was the fact that she and Chibs would both be there. I kicked myself for forcing them to talk.

"Hey, Opie." Ana said as she pulled her helmet off and climbed off the back of the bike. I looked up at her and cut the engine.

"Please don't blow me off in here. You're more than just a friend to me. I can't label shit right now but please, no croweaters." She said, sounding almost nervous. I stood up and lowered my head to look into her eyes.

"Ana, label or not, you don't have to worry. Just have fun, baby." I was so focused on settling her nerves, I kissed her softly without thinking. I had decided to keep kissing and touching to a minimum while we were there, but apparently that wasn't going to work. Ana smiled and nodded before adjusting the beanie on her head and taking a deep breath.

"You good?" I asked as we walked towards the door to the clubhouse. She nodded and flashed me a quick smile before I opened the door for her.


	24. Chapter 24

**ANA'S POV**

I felt a wave of nausea hit me as I stepped inside the clubhouse for the first time since fighting with Chibs and riding off into a coma. Opie's hand on my lower back comforted me, but only slightly. The clubhouse was full and there were even balloons here and there.

"Ana banana!" Tig rushed over to me and wrapped his arms around my shoulders, squeezing me to the brink of suffocation. I relaxed a little more and laughed, squeezing him back.

"Just because I'm here, it doesn't mean you're getting out of looking at paint chips." I said with a wink. Tig's smile dropped a little before he burst into laughter. He gave Opie a nod and smile before heading back to the game of pool he'd been playing.

Happy walked up and handed me a beer before greeting Opie quickly. He'd visited multiple times since I got out of the hospital, so it wasn't a big deal to see him. I nudged him on the arm as I remembered what I'd meant to ask him the day before.

"You got time to come by tomorrow?" I looked up at his dark eyes as he nodded.

"Yeah, I'll call you. I gotta get new ink." With that, he flashed a half smile and headed back to the bar to join a croweater. He and I had been planning my next tattoo for a couple weeks now.

I was taking a swig of my drink and standing by Tara as Jax and Opie debated over who would win in a one armed fight. Tara was rolling her eyes and laughing and I was trying to pretend they weren't still teenagers. That's when I saw him walk through the door.

He seemed different than the last time I'd seen him. First, I noticed that he actually seemed sober. I immediately felt like a hypocrite for noticing that right off the bat. Sure, he was probably a stock holder in Jameson by now, but I was still resisting pain pills and morphine on a daily basis. I was in no position to judge anyone's vices.

"Ana, you okay?" Tara whispered to me as Jax and Ope continued their debate. I was working hard on not lying about my feelings, so I didn't respond at all. I couldn't honestly tell if I was okay or not. I felt my neck growing warm as I peeled my eyes away from him. Happy slid a beer down the bar at me with a blank expression. I nodded before downing half of it in one drink.

Chibs couldn't have missed seeing me. The four of us were standing at the bar while most everyone else had moved outside to be near the fire, despite the coolness in the air. Regardless, Chibs didn't approach me and headed over to the pool table instead. I let out a cautious sigh of relief.

**CHIBS' POV**

"Shove off." I growled to the prospect that was racking balls for a round of pool with Tig. He paused for a moment, considering a rebuttal, but thought better of it.

"Hey, Chibs. Your break." Tig said with a warm smile as he leaned back on the wall. I knew he was pacifying me, but I didn't want to call him out in case he'd take that as an opportunity to share some advice.

I'd seen Ana as soon as the door opened. She wasn't smiling, but seemed happy all the same. She seemed even smaller than I remembered. Maybe it was because she was standing next to Opie and even wearing his hat.

I struck the cue ball with such force, it not only broke the racked balls, it also went flying off the table towards Tig. He jumped to the right just in time to miss getting hit. I shrugged apologetically and took his spot on the wall as he surveyed the table.

My chest fell a little as I watched Opie look down into Ana's eyes with a smile. She and Tara were both laughing about something while Jax scowled. Ana leaned into Opie's chest and I felt like the world was crashing down around me.

I'd told him it would be okay, as long as she was happy. I didn't count on my feelings resurfacing as soon as I saw her. The way her blonde hair fell down her back brought back memories of how it used to leave the pillow smelling like shampoo. Half of her hair being covered by Opie's hat made me sick to my stomach.

"Brother, staring at her won't make you feel any better." Tig's voice broke into my thoughts. I looked over at him and noticed he'd been watching me. He waved a croweater over as I lined up my next shot. By the time I took my shot, the croweater was returning with a beer for Tig and a double of Jameson for me.

I sat the glass on a high-top table and resumed my spot on the wall to wait for my next turn. I caught movement by the bar out of the corner of my eye. Ana and Happy were setting up for an arm wrestling match as Tara shook her head and rested a hand on her enormous stomach.

Happy smirked as the match started. Ana was obviously putting forth more effort than he was, but that was to be expected. Her jaw was tight and her torso was quivering as she struggled to overpower the Tacoma killer. He let his hand be lowered a couple inches before quickly slamming the back of her hand into the bar.

I felt an urge to check on her as she yanked her hand back and shook the pain off. She was laughing and Happy let himself smirk. Ana spun around and raised her hand up to Opie, who laughed and shook his head. I could have tolerated the flirting had he not leaned down and kissed her pouting lips.

I snapped my head away from them and grabbed the glass of Jameson from the table. I'd considered holding off on drinking tonight, but it obviously wasn't an option. If seeing Ana with Opie wasn't a good enough reason to drink, I might as well join AA.

"You suck at pool tonight, Chibs." Tig sank a final ball to win the round before handing his cue up on the rack and joining me at the high top table. I finished my third double and nodded absentmindedly.

**OPIE'S POV**

"I'm going to go check on Tara." Ana said as she glanced down the hall that her sister had gone down several minutes ago. I nodded and took her beer, finishing it off as she walked away. It was a relief to see her so comfortable in the clubhouse tonight.

"Evening." Chibs growled as he walked up to the bar and slid his empty glass towards the croweater behind the bar. I nodded over at him politely. I felt better after our talk this afternoon, but I imagined he wasn't drinking doubles for his health.

"You not worried about that?" Chibs asked as Happy headed down the hall towards the dorms. I raised my brow, lost as to what he was referring to. He chuckled and shook his head as he pointed down the hall with his thumb.

"She's already moved from one son to another. Might be waiting to jump Hap next." He growled with a snicker. I narrowed my eyes and shook my head. I chalked his comments up to the liquor and did my best to ignore him. Obviously, he wasn't as okay with Ana being happy as he'd previously claimed.

A few minutes later, Ana emerged from the hall with Happy right behind her. Coincidence or not, I wasn't bothered by it at all. I knew Happy well enough to trust him and Ana wasn't the type of flake Chibs had tried to imply. They were obviously talking about her tattoo, because she lifted up the hem of her shirt and let him look at the skin above her hip to finalize their plans.

"I guess you're okay with whoring her out. Mind if I take a go for old time's sake?" Chibs asked with a smirk. He'd crossed the line. Drunk or not, I wasn't about to let someone talk about Ana like that. I slammed my beer bottle onto the bar and whipped around to face him.

"You need to shut the fuck up, Chibs. If you're pissed then just say so. Don't run your mouth like a bitch." I said, realizing that my voice was booming over the crowd.

"Fine, I'm pissed you're fucking my ex old lady. I guess I dodged a bullet though, she's obviously popular." Chib's voice had an obvious slur to it. I shook my head and grabbed the front of his kutte. I felt a hand on my arm that was rearing back to hit my brother.

"Stop, Opie. Chibs, get the fuck outside." Ana spat at him as she dropped her hand from my arm. He narrowed his eyes to protest, but decided to follow her anyways. I was left standing with Happy, watching my brother and Ana heading out of the clubhouse together.

**ANA's POV**

I walked over to the deserted playground, stomping out of anger. Chibs' stopped a couple of feet behind me as I turned to look at him. He was obviously drunk and looking for a fight, but I could see the sadness in his eyes as well.

"Go ahead, Chibs. You obviously have a lot to say. If you can talk shit about me to Opie, you should be able to say it to me." I snapped as I looked him in the eye. I stuffed my hand in my pocket and rubbed my thumb over the leather of my belt.

I braced for a verbal assault as Chibs stood silently in front of me. His expression surprised me by softening a little. I felt myself longing for the numbness of pain killers as I watched his eyes fill with tears before a couple fell down his scarred cheeks.


End file.
